Wednesday 18 April 2012

If These Trees Could Talk - Red Forest [2012]


What would we hear If These Trees Could Talk? Guess I'm making an obvious joke here, but I really wondered what I'd hear from Trees' third album. The first two already became post-rock classics and this album could only confirm their incredible talents. Everyone knows it's almost impossible to make something really special in this dusty genre, but so far they managed to keep their originality even without using super-unknown instruments.


It's easy not to notice Breath Of Life surrounding us no matter where we head our steps. So is the sound leading us to the talking forest. The trees never enjoyed heat though, so it's well expected to fear next steps. The First Fire has indeed a primal, blistering spirit - a flame of destruction! Fantastic work of drummer and guitarist creating a really realistic vision with even some kind of burning aura in the end.

Oh I love the stepping intro of Barren Lands of the Modern Dinosaur. Our Dino is big and heavy. He feels a little lonely, so he carefully watches his lands looking for some friends. Unfortunately for him, all creatures whom he finally meet –  They Speak With Knives. Vibrant, anxious guitars, controlled aggression of drums, still I like this idea, even though Dino gets even more upset.

But as you reach the core of Red Forest, the only option is to sit down and watch the trees spin in your head. A complexity of impressions it creates is more similar to red sea flooding your mind. A raw power of dry guitars, um, sorry, pine woods, the softening, warm basses of groun cover, little animals passing you by... I don't want to open my eyes, uniting with nature seems a really great idea right now.

But when I open them, I see The Aleutian Clouds quickly changing in my eyes and making me feel I fly, fly, fly! over red forests. Still, when one lies in the grass for too much time, it's easy to get Left to Rust and Rot. It can be quite a pleasant experience though, especially if those squeaky guitars caress your ears... Just another sigh, When the Big Hand Buries the Twelve and it's a drastic moment you realize we're back in the city.

Damn, I missed those Trees! And I have to say, I like this album even more than their earlier works. So don't be misled by my weird stories, go and dive into Red Forest!

Wednesday 11 April 2012

The Last Days - When The Tomorrow Is a Grey Day [2010]


This Easter-time made me feel really melancholic and rediscovering old treasures. I read old favourite books, watch even older movies and remind old friends. Among many oldies visiting my player, I got really surprised by The Last Days – amazingly atmospheric black/ambient project. Their debut When The Tomorrow Is a Grey Day is almost 2 years old, but today it impressed me just like back in my high school times.


They themselves describe their music as 'Cold, grey and urban music.' Well said. If you already discovered growing giants of the so called 'post black metal', 'blackwave' or 'black shoegaze' like Les Discrets and friends, you'll definitely enjoy The Last Days. The album is just 5 songs, but they manage to make 35 minutes last long enough to go visit dreamland and backwards.

I shall probably talk about all songs to fully express their beauty and maturity, but let me just focus on the core, as the shorter song make more of an instrumental wrapping on the gift.  Make The Change...Are Your Last Days is to me a great picture of city at night and reflections we all make while facing that time. Melancholic passages, shadowing guitars and the omnipresent feeling of being overwhelmed by a dark, depressive power.

Soul Of City on the contrary takes up a fight. It opens in delicate riffs to soon make a drastic move towards its doom – a cry, a struggle and inner headbanging. Indeed, don't they say a spirit of city is battle? This song is a pure, beautiful, sad fight. A fight with urban lifestyle of consumption and hurry, a fight with feeling empty. An everlasting war with what Baudelaire once called spleen.

Still my personal favourite is The Time Will Never Come Back – slowly unfolding, with nicely drawing drums and simple but charming riffs, reminding me how beautiful can a mixture of post rock and black metal get.