Review Summary: A thread dissolves.
Whew lad, has it been a year. It is hardly by now a revolutionary statement to say that within the past year creative fires have been greatly stirred, but it is a statement that rears its legitimacy near constantly. Now, this is something that is most certainly influenced by one's personal taste, but the fact that already incredible and prolific acts (Archspire, Cradle of Filth, Every Time I Die, etc.) have hit something of a creative apex is an astonishing feat. It is with this high bar that I set sail for the endless horizon that is
Coherence. Many questions buzzed around in my hollow cranial cavity, those being "will this dive deeper into the atmospheric leanings of
Vessels? Could it ever match or even top the wicked catharsis of such a record? Should I eschew this unfair standard in favor of something more realistic?" In the end my questions were partially understandable, but also in part utterly pointless.
Be'lakor have always been a patient band. They're never ones to rush in a particular potent swell of sound, instead opting for a slower and more sprawling approach that makes more sense as a contextual whole when the whole listening experience has come to an end. Now, that is not to say that they do not start things off in an epic fashion. In fact, I think the unbridled and relentless energy that starts off "Locus" might be the most immediate and cathartic Be'lakor have ever been. The vortex of blast beats and rapid guitar riffage may be prefaced by some truly wicked and dismal keys (further illustrating how wonderfully the band incorporates electronics into their sound), but when the moment arrives, it barrels straight through your chest with the force of a thousand imploding suns.
It is only after this devastating cosmic anomaly that the fires once again recede into a sprawling set of beautiful and mournful guitar work, with a particular emphasis on the word "mournful". There is something decidedly darker, perhaps even more atonal than what the band has done in the past (even if
Vessels may have been the progenitor of this trend). Moments like the near-end of "Locus" or portions of the track "Hidden Window" showcase this quite well. Some of the riffs feel disjointed and ever-so-slightly off time, such as the one starting at 1:30 off of the aforementioned "Hidden Window". The feelings they form are that of unease, of brooding clouds and stormy skies that grow darker and nearer. An oncoming sense of untold devastation, even. While this theme may craft a hazy umbra that looms over this rather sprawling epoch, there still gleams hope even from the furthest recesses. This brings me to what could contend even "Countless Skies" as the bands greatest closer yet, "Much More Was Lost".
The way Be'lakor knows how to create such elated closers will forever remind me of how close storytelling is to their heart. There is a consuming fire of passion, a certain "heart of nature, fearsome wilderness" feeling that expresses itself throughout the track, thanks to a multitude of things. Earth-rending snarls, a juxtaposition of soft, sweet melodies and unyielding tremolo riffs, soft cymbal tinkering and avalanche-inducing blast beats, and an overall sense of fluidity that glues together every sound that precedes another. It stands as a testament towards their songwriting ability when moments like the pulsing thud of anticipation around 7:24 can smoothly flow into the maelstrom scaling of 8:35. That, in part, is the key to why such a massive record takes so much time to absorb. There's such an attention to transition, a respect for refrain that makes those payouts so damn gorgeous when they arrive. The album is patient. It is meticulous. It is, to summarize this review that is in of itself sprawling, beautiful. The band may be on a slow progressive shift, but the core elements are still tethered strong, even as a thread dissolves.
