Album Rating: 3.0

Music is only worth listening to if it's never been done before. Didn't you know that DarkNoctus?

yeah thats definitely what i said z_z

Album Rating: 3.0

I meeeaann, saying 'it's been done before many many times' is along the lines of saying something lacks originality / is derivative to its detriment which (imho) is a legitimate reason to criticise a piece of art.



i did, however, make sure to flag that if you want to listen to more of the same then you will probs enjoy this quite a bit. just wasn't working for me.

Album Rating: 3.0

@parksungjoon I didn't think it was definitely what you said but if you insist....

https://puu.sh/GBjsJ.jpg

Album Rating: 3.0

"I meeeaann, saying 'it's been done before many many times' is along the lines of saying something lacks originality / is derivative to its detriment which (imho) is a legitimate reason to criticise a piece of art."



but derivative to what...? sounds like which bands and why? the one band you named (in jest admittedly) which is godspeed is a band it sounds nothing like.



it's no problem that the record didn't resonate but overall i find the review non-descript and falls to easily on cop-out criticisms. i got from the review it sounds a bit spacey (it's their least spacey record tbh), it has crescendos (it perhaps relies the least on crescendos of their last few records as well) but not much else.

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

"it's even more tiring seeing cop-out arguments like "it's been done before" because frankly you could say that about so many records and i don't see it as a valid demerit. it's a dumb argument."



In any negative take that relies on "this is unoriginal," there is also an unwritten "and the execution isn't good enough to override that." To use another post-rock example, I adored Infinity Shred's last album and it barely has an original bone in its body; it just does what it does really well. This album definitely sounds like GIAA in their comfort zone, but competence =/= memorability

Album Rating: 3.0

@noctus fair play, i appreciate the cc



tbh i didn't think a band by band comparison would be particularly interesting to read, so opted for a more high level approach. the point wasn't 'omg this sounds like xyz bands or xyz albums', more that it sounds boring and generic to me and relies on the build-and-release post-rock foundation as a crutch in place of actually going for an innovative approach to composition (e.g. recurring motifs, use of space/dynamics other than simply going quiet then LOUD then quiet then LOUD, building an engaging atmosphere etc.).



if you want some actual comparators, then ye, i get russian circles, pg.lost and caspian vibes off of this, and there are obvs comparisons to be drawn with the bands own work, even if this does take a heavier track than they usual do. obvs this sounds nothing like godspeed, though in fairness my reference to them was in order to contrast the two, not equate them

Album Rating: 3.0

@project perhaps it's that the argument isn't fleshed out. frankly i don't think this sounds like GiaA in their comfort zone - i think they melodically changed things up a lot. they've never sounded quite so atonal before and they shift the structures here far quicker, relying on much denser soundscapes to carry the songs. there's a lot more going on and to say it just relies on crescendos isn't the case - there's a lot of switchups to the structures in each track here. the first track alone constantly shifts and breathes - it's really dense and there's so much more interplay than i think they've ever had on any previous record. so i'd really be interested to know why the reviewer doesn't feel the execution isn't enough to override the originality argument.

Good review dude. Doubt I’ll check this out, they’ve never been much more than average imo. Second paragraph is spot on

Album Rating: 3.0

@asleep i guess we'll have to agree to disagree. this album absolutely does use a dynamic approach to songwriting rather than just going loud/quiet/loud/quiet and tbh, i don't think it sounds anything like caspian or pg.lost, bands that absolutely do use those tropes. again, i think this website has just been needlessly harsh on this band and it's always mystified me a bit.

Album Rating: 3.5

while I haven't heard every GIAA album, this is the most heavy and gritty I have ever heard them sound, esp. on that bass tone. Burial, Spectres, and Fade are the tracks that best demonstrate this newer sound for them. this album was a pleasant surprise for me this year.

Album Rating: 3.0

yeah this is growing on me a bunch. no mention of the drums too - this is the best they've ever been for them. so much interplay with the melodies, really animated.

best summary

Album Rating: 3.5

Bang on Noctus. Actually listening to this record and you really delve into the nuances that set this apart from previous records. It's more alive, visceral and more fresh than they've sounded in a long while. It's immediate and very enjoyable. I agree it is set apart from their previous releases.



Drums and bass are especially fantastic

Album Rating: 3.0 | Sound Off

"the first track alone constantly shifts and breathes - it's really dense and there's so much more interplay than i think they've ever had on any previous record."



" no mention of the drums too - this is the best they've ever been for them."



on those points we agree

Album Rating: 3.0

Glad you bois are digging this, wish I felt the same tbh

This doesn't actually sound as boring as most of the stuff in the same vein. Well above average for crescendocore.

Yeah mb id give this a 1.5. Impressive stuff.

Album Rating: 3.0

Damn that u turn tho