Mare have released this excellent EP from Hydrahead records. They are label mates with basically the entire genre. Isis, Neurosis, and Pelican if are not currently, are all now on Hydrahead. Mare joins these bands releasing an excellent record that is equally as original as those of their predecessors. They use clean melodic themes frequently, similar to what you might find on Isis' Panopticon. The singer, Tyler Semrick (guitar) has an excellent singing voice whether he is singing true notes, screaming his balls off or growling. His diversity is magnified by his talent.
For only having three members, the music here is incredibly dense. The guitars are clearly downtuned, but that is not a bad thing. The drummer, while good and consistent, is not a legend. He plays what works. Often using rolling toms that work so well with Neurosis.
Each song is an adventure in itself. Anisette begins slow and thoughtful and builds itself into a confusion while always taking it's sweet time. They Sent You begins with orchestral horns accompanying the singer in a sweet, clear falsetto before the guitars march in and take over with melodies similar to what you may find while listening to Pelican. The grumbling intro of Tropic gives way to an almost jazzy sounding section with clean harmonized vocals and beutiful guitar without ever truly becoming heavy. Palaces Part 1 is reminiscent of an aural preciperatory trickle before the bassy drone shakes out the listener's bowels and then boiling over into a chaotiv frenzy. Finally, Sun For Miles takes off where Palaces left off before an a capella section pulls the listener in. This song is amazing in that it is a capella until roughly 3/4 of the way through when it ruptures and is music fitting for a movie of a hulking robot of war.
The fact that this band is able to distort anything and have it downtuned into oblivion without making it sound heavy is a feat in itself but even more impressive is that using the same tone, distortion and tuning, they can crush your eardrums. A truly excellent way for any band to begin their recorded careers.
