Review Summary: Recycling post punk: an epiphany.
When Heave Blood & Die was formed, back in 2016, the band’s concept and its execution were something pretty different from what they have become on their last record,
Post People. Hell, I don’t even know if that angry stoner post punk gang flying their instruments in the video of “Plague” are the same dudes chilling out and jamming on a coastal studio during the recording of this third album. The transformation the band has gone through is nothing short of impressive, specially because things have taken a very interesting turn for the Norwegians.
Post People exudes atmosphere, mainly stretching their original post punk roots into something that resembles post rock, but also exploring the hypnotic trails of kraut rock. What comes through the other side is a body of work that feels celestial and at the same time, diabolically attractive. Allow me this modest hyperbole: I have not heard anything like this in many years. The opening track, “Radio Silence” is extremely effective when it comes to pulling you into HB&D’s territory. The main riff is maddening, neck-twisting, and when that electric sitar comes in, one can only hold a deep breath, tighten up the gluteus and clench a fist while taking it all in. It’s one of the many moments where the group reaches a state of grace, a cathartic reaction to the common sound they are all sharing in the recording room, as it sends wave lengths shattering your spine.
The kraut ride of “Metropolitan Jam” leaves no doubt about the band’s intentions. How they went from… whatever they were doing to this is (I guess) a tale for another time, but there they go, followed by the explosive “True Believer”, and into the album’s equinox. “Everything is Now” is not pretty, and it somehow brings the album down a notch forcing the band out of the momentum gained so far with a slow-paced, grey tune. Fortunately, “Continental Drift” brings back the same cool, refreshing vibe that elevates the first half. Vocals are quite robotic, quasi-monotonal, acting more as a rhythmical pattern rather than providing a melodic vessel to navigate the track. That is, at least, until the last two tracks that close
Post People wrap things up with a spice of dream pop thrown into the mix. But the band doesn’t rush or intent to go out quietly, as both tracks end with an ecstatic jam of noise, flangers, and warped synths which guarantee mighty live performances (whenever we get those back).
Heave Blood & Die seem like a completely new band in 2021, one that I wouldn’t have got into if they had insisted in lashing out their early stuff. The juvenile boiling violence of their first iteration leaves way to a smarter, more refined, and way more interesting version of their music. A recycled vinyl edition, lyrics that don’t flinch when denouncing the state of the world and a recording that sounds confident and invigorating can’t all be coincidence. This is a band with a plan, for all of you,
Post People.
