Spaceslug - Eye the Tide

By Hera Vidal. It’s taken me a while to finally get to Spaceslug’s Eye the Tide, a slow burn of an album that eventually seeps into your skin. First track “Obsolith” is an easy starter that lazily drags along the surface. Heavy blues-tinged guitars create a comfortable, consistent rhythm that makes you want to groove and move your body to the beat.

By Hera Vidal.

Artwork by Maciej Kamuda.

It’s taken me a while to finally get to Spaceslug’s Eye the Tide, a slow burn of an album that eventually seeps into your skin.

First track “Obsolith” is an easy starter that lazily drags along the surface. Heavy blues-tinged guitars create a comfortable, consistent rhythm that makes you want to groove and move your body to the beat. The song exudes a sensuality that I tend to associate with post-metal. It feels like touching a live wire whose current emits a warmth that feels intimate.

The layered vocals sounds like a unified voice. All members sing on the album, but if you listen closely, you can hear all the different timbres. For the most part though, the music focuses on the instruments, as if the band recorded this while they were jamming out in someone’s basement. The use of reverb and tone throughout the album seems to also be a character in itself, coming and going when it pleases. There isn’t a focus on it, but when it comes, you will hear it and be swept by it.

As the album continues the vibe seems to shift, going from that relaxed, intimate atmosphere to something a little more sinister. In the third track “Eternal Monuments” the repetitiveness heard in “Obsolith” begins to combine with lower guitar tones. The beat slows and fades away into the next track, “Words Like Stones”, where the music becomes more aggressive with harsh vocals and even blast beats. Like a drug-taking experience, where the psychedelia kicks in about halfway through and then you can only bask in it. The music also tend to drone in the latter half, as the atmosphere ebbs and flows between laziness and mania.

I found myself coming back to Eye the Tide at different times throughout the past year, each time liking it more. Spaceslug's blend of stoner doom is a delight we all need to hear.

Alcest - Spiritual Instinct

By Justin C. I finally had the opportunity see Alcest live when they toured with their last record, Kodama. As a long-time fan, it was a fantastic experience: a small venue and a band putting everything they had into their performance. I remember being struck by how heavy Alcest can be, especially on stage.

By Justin C.


I finally had the opportunity to see Alcest live when they toured with their last record, Kodama. As a long-time fan, it was a fantastic experience: a small venue and a band putting everything they had into their performance. I remember being struck by how heavy Alcest can be, especially on stage. That’s not necessarily unusual--the energy of playing in front of a live audience plus many amplifiers often kick up a band’s power quotient. But what I didn’t realize at the time is that it was a little bit of a preview of the energy they’d bring to their next new album, Spiritual Instinct.

Invisible Oranges did an interesting interview with Neige, and in it, he describes this album as a kind of catharsis, a (slight) step away from his more “otherworldly” musical ideas and incorporating more darkness. Make no mistake--this is Alcest-level heavy. This isn’t a brutal death metal album that comes pitched to you as “PANCREAS-RIPPING BRUTALITY ARGGHGHHGHGH!1!!!1!” The very Alcest-ian sense of melody and sweeping soundscapes remain present, but what you do get from Spiritual Instinct is a harder-driving energy than you might expect.

Photos by Abrisad.

The opening track, “Les Jardins De Minuit” (roughly translated, “The Garden of Midnight”), starts out with a pulsing bassline joined by a keening, single-note guitar riff. It’s not long before we’re into some frenetic drums and tremolo riffs with clean, melodic singing riding the wave until Neige punctuates the whole thing with his black metal shrieks. If that sounds like what you usually expect from Alcest, you’re not wrong, but the song kicks off a propulsive feel that carries through the rest of the album, both in the more metal parts and the quieter, introspective interludes. Previous Alcest albums made me want to transport to a different dimension--the dreamworld from Neige’s childhood that drives so much of his musical vision--but this album makes me want to make that journey on a rocket.

One of my favorite tracks, “Le Miroir,” showcases the stronger sense of duality in this album. The song starts with a gently ascending and descending guitar line, swelling and deflating like slow, meditative breathing. (Try breathing along with it--it’s doing wonders for my anxiety.) The line is eventually layered with Neige’s crystal clean vocals, light electronic touches, and distorted guitars. The drums build and eventually recede. It’s not the heaviest track on the album by any means, but again, there’s that sense of motion and release.

It’s easy to get hung up on the heaviness level of Alcest albums. Is this one more or less black metal than the last one, or is this more of their shoegaze side? But as Neige said himself in the IO interview, “There is something people like about us, and it’s also something we like about ourselves which is the fact that we keep the Alcest touch — this thing that makes us Alcest — but every time we sound different.” I think that’s key to their enduring appeal. There’s always that underlying essence that makes their sound instantly recognizable, regardless of whether Neige is trying exorcise some demons or float through the ether.

Irata - Tower

By Matt Hinch. Apparently Irata has been around since 2007 but I've never come across their name until now. Also, from what I hear, they've gone through some evolution through math-y and fusion realms to reach the point they're at now. While it would be interesting to dig into those

By Matt Hinch.

Watercolor by Santos.

Apparently Irata has been around since 2007 but I've never come across their name until now. Also, from what I hear, they've gone through some evolution through math-y and fusion realms to reach the point they're at now. While it would be interesting to dig into those formative albums preceding this monster 2019 offering, Tower there's enough right here to keep you entertained. If I had to play my hand early on what Tower is all about I'd say "immersive heavy rock fused together with a slight 90s alternative vibe, pop sensibilities, and a tendency toward progressiveness kept in check by a thunderous foundation."

What does that mean? It means Jon Case (bass/vocals), Jason Ward (drums/vocals/synth) and guitarists Cheryl Manner and Owen Burd gather together a variety of styles and feelings, molding them into one of 2019's brightest shining gems.

The title track gets things started with a chugging force meeting bright slices of light (more on that later) shaded by the accessibility of a band like Torche, vocally at least. This song is relatively short. The themes and general feeling are further expanded upon throughout the album. The key word here is "feeling". Irata make you FEEL the whole time. "Waking Eye" is a good example. The chorus gets right into your soul, screaming guitars bite into a swirl of motion amid proggy riffs, and you're taken home by a controlled freakout at the end. The instrumental portion, something Irata does very well, comes with full spectrum dynamics and an enveloping and penetrating essence. A soothing bassline anchors melodic vocals and guitars during one of the album's quieter moments and gives it a somewhat Tool-like impression. That's not the only time Tool comes to mind either. Also, sometimes you could lift a riff from this and plop it into a Mastodon song and it would fit right in. The surrounding parts give Irata their own identity though.

"Crawl to Corners" really plays into the feeling of light with the guitars. There's a sense or a vision of light filtering through a canopy of trees and clouds, or sparkling upon moving water. It feels like life and growth, a counter to the mournful trumpet that opens the track. However, when they move into crushing mode the darkness comes swiftly.

Closer "Constellations" features those smooth vocals (quite common throughout), sweet bass and incredible groove. It captures a sense of space. Not just the space with the stars but openness and size. The opposite of oppressing even when they hammer the listener with a concentrated attack. It also feels like being thrust forward with all things passing by in a blur but the impressions left and clear and welcome.

Overall the album feels very put together. There's an effortless technicality in the way the guitars weave together on different paths which makes them hit that much harder when everyone comes together. I'm sure there was plenty of effort involved but it flows so well that the listener at least doesn't have to try hard to enjoy it.

It's a beautiful album. "Weightless" is my favourite example. It's 4:20 long and that was probably what time it was when I first heard it if you take my meaning. Vocals soar over crunchy riffs while taking you to the clouds. The whole song makes you feel alive and weightless indeed. It is, as stated on the track, "...so beautiful. So goddamn beautiful!"

Tower is simply captivating. Irata manage to bring a heaviness together with beauty, catchiness, and emotion in a way that feels transcendent. It lifts the listener up, puts them through a range of emotions and leaves them to experience the album from their own angle. I've found myself spellbound and on the verge of overwhelmed. It's a powerful album that leaves a varied and deeply satisfying impression. You won't be disappointed.

Mesarthim - Ghost Condensate

With no advance warning Mesarthim, Australia’s highly prolific anonymous space black metal duo, recently released Ghost Condensate, their fourth full length in five years. Despite the speed of their releases Mesarthim’s quality has remained consistent and their sound has evolved considerably

By Calen Henry.


With no advance warning Mesarthim, Australia’s highly prolific anonymous space black metal duo, recently released Ghost Condensate [Editor's note: the review was written in April], their fourth full length in five years. Despite the speed of their releases Mesarthim’s quality has remained consistent and their sound has evolved considerably without losing their signature (and divisive) sound.

The group's 2015 debut, Isolate, introduced the duo’s mix of atmospheric black metal, howling vocals, and spacey synths evoking vintage science fiction and science documentaries. Subsequent releases added to that sound expanding the sonic palette with full blown techno interludes and more melodic lead work on the metal side.

Ghost Condensate furthers this evolution. It draws the most inspiration from their 2016 EP, The Great Filter where they first really dove into the epic. The result is more vintage space opera than science documentary. Ghost Condensate is rife with epic guitar riffs and leads, even breaking out a pick scrape into a face-melting solo, not to mention some truly epic twin guitars. The band’s trademark synths support the guitars while also being given time to shine in ambient and techno interludes

Their fourth album delivers exactly what fans expect from Mesarthim, without rehashing previous releases. Those that object to their mix of synth and metal won’t be won over, but fans of less atmospheric metal that weren’t convinced by their earlier work should check out their current incarnation.

Interview - The Ecosystem of a Botanist

Botanist’s newest album, Ecosystem, is another “Collective” album, wherein main-man Otrebor brings his live band into the writing and recording process. The result is in perfect harmony with Botanist’s “solo” albums, but yet also brings in different sounds and energies.

By Justin C.

Botanist’s newest album, Ecosystem, is another “Collective” album, wherein main-man Otrebor brings his live band into the writing and recording process. The result is in perfect harmony with Botanist’s “solo” albums, but yet also brings in different sounds and energies. Metal Bandcamp has covered Botanist from its very beginnings, so you’ve gotten a lot of words from me about the project. For this release, I wanted to change it up a little, and Otrebor was kind enough to answer some of my questions about the album.


In the overall arc of Botanist's developing discography, are the collective albums planned, or do they come about more spontaneously?

The “Collective” albums take a lot more practical planning mostly because they involve other people’s schedules, priorities, and work ethics. In Ecosystem’s case, the initial idea came during the 2017 European tour to make an album that we would play entirely on stage — further differentiating studio / solo Botanist from the live band. We would take a year to write it, and tour on it in 2019. When it’s just me, that kind of deadline is easy to stick to, but with other musicians involved, it goes much slower... like, The Shape of He to Come took 3 years! In contrast, VI: Flora took me 4-5 months from beginning of writing to completing tracking of all instruments. So a year and a half to have a finished album to send to be pressed to vinyl in time for a planned tour made for tight scheduling, as any delays by one member would make all other members’ work more stressful.

Thematically, it’s all the same level of planning, or rather, an album being a “Collective” doesn’t make it more or less planned inherently than a solo album. The most conceptual album I’ve got planned for the future is a solo album, but the “Collective” albums to date and to come are more thematically conceptual than Botanist I/II, III, V, VI...

What drew you to the idea of doing an album focused on the Redwood ecosystem? I know a little about them, and they're pretty fascinating, especially the "mini-forests" that can actually grown on top of them.

The mini forests within the branches of the redwoods are amazing. Redwoods are my single favorite botanical entity, so having a concept album revolving essentially around them would be very inspirational to me. Redwoods will be making another entry or two in albums to come.

Reading the lyrics puts me in mind of a biology textbook in verse form. You cover a lot of scientific ground, but the musical end result certainly doesn’t come across as a dry recitation. Are there particular challenges to lyrically detailing an ecosystem, or do you approach it as you would any other narrative arc?

I don’t really have a deep answer for you. I researched redwood forests, pulled out eight elements that would inspire me to write a song about, and applied that balance of Romantic spin on scientific fact that most Botanist lyric writing draws from. There’s not so much a narrative arc present. The theme is the ecosystem of a redwood forest in the Pacific Northwest of the United States (also some stuff is taken from research about forests in Santa Cruz), but it’s not like a King Diamond album where there are characters and a plot one can follow. I wanted the darkest, most unsettling song to be “Disturbance,” as it’s about forest fires, and the last song to be the triumphant uplift, and that had to be “Red Crown” — the culmination of the theme of the red crown (a term used to describe clusters of redwood trees) mentioned throughout the album to come to a climax with that song being the tribute to Sequoia Sempervirens itself.

The rest of the album’s list was determined by emotional flow and how much one song’s first note transitioned well from the previous song’s last note, how well each side fit onto an LP, and how well we could imagine this album as a live set would flow. Song 1 has a strong anthemic chorus, and its intro works well as a “we’re beginning the set / album” attention getter, before the volume kicks in. Song 7 (“Abiotic”) is the relaxed breather before the big finale. Stuff like that determines how the album gets arranged — it’s largely after that the sets of lyrics get paired up based on mood.

In terms of music, I'm continually impressed with your ability to write a melody that can convey almost any shade of emotion, and every album has some new sonic aspect that keeps things fresh. What struck me with this album is that there are more clean vocals, often in chorus with other band members. You worked those into the last collective album, The Shape of He to Come, but they seem to play a larger role here. Some of them are even painfully vulnerable, like in "Abiotic." Was that a conscious decision to go that direction, or did it just happen naturally? Is it hard to step out from behind a more black metal vocal styling into something so unadorned?

Thanks for that first comment. I want the music Botanist creates to feature a full range of emotions. As much as I love metal, it’s one of the biggest critiques I have of it: Bands on average tend to stick to the same emotional space that they set their bands out to inhabit. Personally, it would burn me out to have to always be angry, or sad, or happy when creating, and having to convey a singular emotion on stage, particularly negative emotions, day in and day out on tour, and to be around that energy that it creates, with people bringing and expecting that kind of energy to the shows... I question what kind of toll that would take.

I want there to be more clean vocals because of the emotional facets that a variety of vocals can bring: screaming, consonant melodic vocals, dissonant, eerie melodic vocals, deathgrunts... it will be an ongoing study of how to experiment implementing them to new results. It’s also because I want to challenge myself on singing better. That’s a personal challenge too, to be willing to be vulnerable on a whole new level. To grow as an artist and explore that emotional feedback. I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a great singer, but I do have the ability to write a melody, understand how to construct a harmony, and kind of like my drumming and probably all of Botanist, my style is mine and you'll know it’s me when you hear it. The challenge going forward is to increasingly admit to myself, “yeah, I sing.” It was a self-realization when I was in the studio with Fredrik Nordström and was hemming and hawing about the singing, saying I wasn’t a singer. Fredrik’s response was, “You are. You’re singing on the songs.”

It’s a weird thing coming from a place where I wanted just to play drums in bands, to then doing whatever vocals I could because I was the only person who would, to developing vocals into things I never would have attempted 10 years ago. Then the big challenge is to get it as good as I honestly can, present that new vulnerability to the world, and be prepared for whatever reaction.

“Abiotic” is painfully vulnerable. You’re right. Cynoxylon helped me with some of the sections, and his comment in a part or two after tracking was, “That’s pretty femme.” And it is. It’s an aspect of Botanist that needs to be, whether it’s me singing or not.

Botanist has passed its 10-year anniversary as a musical project. Climate change and environmentalism were certainly ongoing topics when you started, but now in 2019, the conversation seems to be both more impassioned and, unfortunately, just as unproductive. Does that affect how you approach Botanist?

It has no effect on the creative output. I create because I have the fervent desire to do so systematically. I do so in Botanist because I’m obsessed with classical botanical art, Romantic poetry and art, and black metal. What keeps me doing Botanist in particular is it’s enabled me to find something to support that is bigger than I am, that transcends my self-importance and personal needs — feeling that I do what I do to support my own perception of the greater good, which is something I can comfortably and confidently do through art.

For those of us with OCD tendencies, I have to ask: What about V? Where is album V? :)

It exists. It’s called Whorl, and was created somewhere in late 2010-early 2011. The 16-minute “Lathyrus” was up on Botanist.nu for a while in 2011 when I had samplers from the first five records to listen to. Whorl is largely what got Botanist signed to The Flenser in 2013 — Jonathan really wanted to release that record in particular. The problem was that Flora also existed at the same time, and the only person who thought Whorl was better was Jonathan. Haha. Balan from Palace of Worms listened to both on our marathon 2-man drive back from dropping off all the other kids at Sea-Tac airport after our 2013 West Coast tour, and he said Whorl was ok/good, but Flora was clearly the one to release after Mandragora as it was the most remarkable step forward. I believe he’s right, and the fans and critical feedback support that. Look, Whorl is fine, it’s the fifth solo record, it’s not as good as the sixth, and the sixth was ready to go at the same time. Botanist “V” will for sure be released, I’d love to do it with The Flenser, and I’d love to put it out between solo records “IX” and “X,” so by then it will be unmistakably be old school as fuck, and it will at least appeal to the crowd that prefers “the old stuff” more. Hahaha.