The presidential election in the United States is coming up this November, and it’s an easy cause for anxiety when considering the possibilities for even a second. The Republican party is using, among other disgusting tactics, immigration as a means for firing up their base with their minions chanting “send them back” at campaign rallies. Yeah, these are the people of the alleged Jesus, a character they don’t understand.
Respire, a band that’s stretched across the U.S. and Canada, focused their excellent new record “Hiraeth” on immigration and the plight of people who are trying to find a better life for their families. Yet, their plight takes them from one path of hostility to another as humans continue to find ways to be inhospitable and cruel to others. It’s also a warning to those people who remain put and flaunt their perceived privileges over others who just want to live in peace. The band—Egin Kongoli –(vocals, guitar, synthesizer, piano), Rohan Lilauwala (vocals, guitar), Darren Scarfo (vocals, guitar), Travis Dupuis (vocals, drums), Ben Oliver (bass), Eslin McKay (vocals, violin, viola), Emmett O’Reilly (vocals, trumpet)—is a strange amalgamation of volcanic black metal, sweeping post-rock, and classic indie rock, making for one of the more interesting forces in heavier music. This album could have a widespread appeal on a number of audiences as it contains many different influences, and the subject matter is a human one that could use far more compassion from others.
“Keening” starts with a gasp of strings and birds chirping, the playing feeling breezy and stimulating before the howls arrive and deliver menace. The playing continues to rouse amid the carnage, horns calling, an adventurous pace pushing blood through your veins, giving off a trippy indie rock feel. “The Match, Consumed” starts as animalistic black metal, snarling and pounding, growls rushing to the surface. Melodies then emerge from underneath, group singing rousing, the strings gliding, slipping into “Distant Light of Belonging” that awakens with chimes, strings, and the sound of crowd noise. The pace gets burly as grim growls slash, group wailing building as the pressure gets darker. Shrieks then rain down, horns pushing gloriously, the music flowing into “First Snow” where keys fall like flakes, the guitars rising along with the singing. The playing then rips open and scorches, the scathing warning of, “You can’t escape,” adding to your spiraling emotions, the playing continuing to corrode as everything fades in static. “Home of Ash” brings jolting guitars and a mix of harsh and gang vocals, the playing gutting fully. Calm then washes over as the horns ache, howls stretching before a fresh eruption, beastly cries battling with renewed energies, blurring out into mystical air.
“Voiceless; Nameless” opens with strings gliding, howls burying emotions in rubble, and the playing slowly melting into the ground. The tempo gradually pushes back, horns streaking as the keys slip into time. “The Sun Sets Without Us” dawns with active guitars bubbling, shouts and shrieks getting the blood rushing, and eventually a cold front entering, bringing down the temperature. “It won’t get better before it gets worse, tomorrow always felt like home,” rouses as a group call, howls reemerging and mangling with force, the gushing playing fading into “We Grow Like Trees in Rooms of Borrowed Light” that has strings layering and more soundscapes from the street. Then the adrenaline bursts, bouncing off walls like an At the Drive In attack. Doom falls even as glorious horns glaze with power, mashing and wrenching, the pace leaving ample bruising as ugliness pushes through any sense of serenity. “Do The Birds Still Sing” dawns amid a doomy haze, crazed yells stinging as the strings surge, the playing ripping apart at the seams. Energy spikes as the playing trudges, the vocals punch, and the final embers burn into closer “Farewell (In Standard)” that bask in strings and horns, group singing awakening your spirit. “Don’t cry if this is goodbye,” feels both sad and hopeful, the keys trickling as all voices merge, easing into eternal calm.
“Hiraeth” is a calling out and embrace for those who have had to leave their homes to find a better way of life, and the 10 tracks Respire commit to this record are full of emotion, heart, and compassion. This band’s unique mix of sounds is a sort of visitor, and a welcome one, to extreme music circles, and what they bring is a welcoming mat to those who have other ambitions besides always being battered with decibels. That opening of arms is both a theme the record hammers home and a reminder that being heavy encompasses more than just the sound as the messages contained within are just as impactful.
For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/respirefamily
To buy the album (worldwide), go here: https://www.dinealonestore.com/products/respire-hiraeth
Or here (U.S.): https://persistentvisionrecords.com/products/respire-hireath-lp-persistent-vision-exclusive-variant
For more on the label, go here: https://dinealonerecords.com/
Meat Mead Metal 