First things first, it must be said Maths’ 2009 debut album ‘Descent’ was outstanding – a screamo album looming truly head and shoulders above its peers. Lo-fi (very lo-fi), dissonantly coarse, seemingly very loose song structures…it sounds like a mess. And it is, but what a beautiful mess it is. The bombardment of discordant guitars and blast beats were anchored by dynamics so subtle that they, along with the unhinged nature of the album as a whole, gave the illusion that it was simply chaos for chaos’ sake. This was certainly not the case as ‘Descent’ was a meticulously constructed album that didn’t let a second go to waste and as a result was an intensely claustrophobic, emotional work of art.
Skip forward little over a year and the Norfolk band have released ‘Ascent’, an EP clocking in at 11:36 and consisting of just four tracks. As the title would lead you to believe it is in the same vein as its full-length predecessor – this is, of course a good thing. Though while the album and the EP share many qualities, it must be pointed out that ‘Ascent’ is not ‘Descent’ pt. 2. Well, not exactly.
In terms of composition and style the two are similar, though ‘Ascent’ feels like a leaner affair. That is to say while it still possesses the frenetic quality that its predecessor did, it is toned down on ‘Ascent’ and is generally more one-dimensional in terms of dynamics. The result of this is that the EP is not as ear-shatteringly chaotic, as gut-wrenchingly despairing, or as urgent as one might have hoped. While the twelve tracks that constituted 'Descent’ felt as interconnected as the roots that adorned its cover the same fluidity is noticeably absent from ‘Ascent’. But although the EP
does feel disjointed by comparison, and bear in mind this is a minor gripe based on almost unreasonable expectations, it does place more emphasis on the individual tracks which are all still very strong. The production on ‘Ascent’ is far clearer than before and so while the improved clarity – the bass lines in particular – is enjoyable Maths
do in fact lose some of their ragged charm.
Though ‘Ascent’ is not as accomplished as ‘Descent’ as a whole, it does contain moments to rival its predecessor: the frantic guitar fills in the middle ‘section’ of
‘Consecrated Earth’; the range of vocal styles employed on the schizophrenic
‘Unending Bloom’; the rumbling bass lines in the bridge of
‘The Wind Swept Away’ and, as before, the drumming is jaw-droppingly brilliant throughout. The closing salvo of ‘The Wind Swept Away’ as a whole is particularly impressive and is arguably the most ambitious track that the band have recorded to date. Dynamically and structurally more ambitious than the other tracks on ‘Ascent’, it sweeps through several contrasting sections flawlessly, rising and falling before hauntingly fading out having threatened to reach a crashing climax once again.
To put it bluntly, overall, ‘Ascent’ is not as good as ‘Descent’. Stylistically though, the two are very similar: coarse or pretty, melodic guitar lines still weave in and out of one another; Zen’s vocals are as ferociously focussed as ever; the bass work is given new found emphasis thanks to improved production and seemingly anchors everything, while Alfie’s octopus-like drumming embellishes Maths’ sound even further. But although the two
are indeed very similar, ‘Ascent’ still pales in comparison to ‘Descent’ – which is by no means intended an insult or a derogatory remark, by the way. But for all the verbosity of this review the reasons for this disparity in quality are more intangible and indefinable. Nevertheless, ‘Ascent’ is still a very, very good record and is only a
misstep when compared to previous works. Additionally, and more importantly, it is further evidence that Maths are a very talented band and one certainly worthy of the attention of anyone with even a passing interest in hardcore/emo/screamo, or whatever the kids are calling it these days.
