Review Summary: An unknown gem of the indie/underground scene, Crimson Mourn's debut album "Our Eyes Were Closed" is a spectacular musical effort encapsulated by the post-rock genre, as well as it's various other influences.
Crimson Mourn is the DIY solo project of a spanish musician by the name of Mauro Beltran. As soon as you listen to the first song, you'll notice right away that this was recorded on crappy, ultra-low budget equipment, because of the lo-fi quality. However, don't dismiss this album just because of this. The record as a whole is an incredible piece of music. Although the genre that would probably fit his music the best is post-rock, there are elements of post-punk and various other genres threaded into this 8-track work-of-art. The vocals presence on this album is rather scarce, and are only prominently displayed on a few songs, But the style of music as a whole could be comparable to groups such as Sigur Ros, and Godspeed You! Black Emperor. Almost every song is dynamic, versatile, and interesting, with songs such as "Last Days from November" that shift from a deep, spoken-word ambient piece to a full-blown lo-fi rocker, then back to the spoken-word ambience where it started, where as the shortest song on the album "Life is Fragile" clocks in at about 2:43 seconds and is just a stripped down piano piece. And "This Is a Freedom Message!" contains spoken-word, rant-like vocal parts that touch on subjects such as hate, intolerance, war, unity, and various other subjects, while "We Only Live to Breathe" is a straight-up 4 minute ambient song, but has alot of feeling to it. The guitar work that is dispersed among the album is somewhat similar to early U2, and is energetic, melodic, and refreshing enough to keep your ears engaged. There is plenty of strings, and choirs thrown in for extra texture also, But the instrumentation i was most impressed with on this record are the drums, and the piano playing, not just because of the technicality, but also because of the energy and passion, and the various emotions that are conveyed such as hope, fear, and despair. Many of the songs have several layers of vocals portayed over ambient noise.. The deep, spoken-word vocals are often portrayed over ambient music, are nearly indecipherable in most cases, and sound clipped in some cases as well. To sum it up, this record is relaxed, down-to-earth, melodic, compelling, haunting, beautiful, and is well worth a listen, especially if you're a fan of the post-rock genre. But even if you're not into this style of music, this is still an excellent piece of work by a budding musician.
