ENTRANA

Band: ENTRANA

Genres: Punk / Hardcore / Metal / Screamo / Skramz / Experimental
Related artists: Winterbourne, Bongwraith and Treeminder.
Country: Milwaukee, Wisconsin U.S.A.
Years Active: 2017-present
Song: "Michael Scofield"
Album: "Jeffrey & The Last Monarch"
Year: 2018
For fans of: Shin Guard, Edhochuli, Apostles Of Eris, Healing Powers, Kidcrash, Mouse Fitzgerald, Annakarina, Terry Green, The Fall Of Troy, Tunes For Bears To Dance To, Polina, Crippled Children and Snag.

Label(s): Self Released

This post's artist is from the March 2019 Mix. This is track #5.

You can download: the March 2019 Mix#3 right here or get the new April 2019 Mix#4 here.

I feel like this intro only needs two facts. #1 = the band was introduced to me by my friend Peter who plays in Snag. #2 = when I listen to this band and my wife is around I always turn to her whenever a song starts and state, "Riff City".

I could I should say a tad more before we get into the releasees. The band shares members with Winterbourne, Bongwraith and Treeminder and has a screamo/metal/prog sound that lies somewhere between the ridiculous technicality of Edhochuli/Kidcrash and newer screamo with some mathy leanings, such as Shin Guard, Apostles Of Eris, Healing Powers and Mouse Fitzgerald.

In 2017 they released a demo single for "Greasy Bags" but titled it "Demo 2017 (Track 4)", and to be honest it's fucking sick, whether for a demo or proper recording. The clean vocals waver a bit more and the screaming is a bit too high in the mix, but all the noodles and sick shit is all there. But I'm getting ahead of myself, as we should probably just move on to the spectacular 2018 EP that housed this track, as well as four others.

So, 'Jeffrey & The Last Monarch' is fucking stellar, plain and simple. It opens with the very short and deceptive "All These Bodies", which is a slow, dreamy, (mostly) instrumental jam with hints of what's to come in the final 40 seconds of the track. "Prog is for the Children" is next, and good god this is where shit gets real. After toying with the listener the song hits full swing 15 seconds in with dizzying guitar-work and screaming. The screaming then switches to gang singing and all of a sudden we got a sick breakdown and shrieking. Before the halfway point there's even laserbeamed solo that is transmitted into space as the band begins floating around with zero gravity. Seriously there are so many parts to this worth mentioning that I should just stop now cuz we have three more songs to talk about, all of which I like even more!

Smack-dab in the middle is "The Wiseman Who Knows Nothing", an awesome song that rides an unbridled riff through space and time, all whilst getting screamed at in your fucking face. There are some bassy sections in this that'll give you aftershocks, screams that'll haunt you for days and ridiculously meticulous guitar and drums. The nightmarish ending climaxes with a conclusion not far from the sounds of Between The Buried And Me. "Greasy Bags" shows up next, rerecorded and bursting with riffs that'll simultaneously wow and infect you, none more deadly than the 1:44 build to the 2:30 climax...good lord! Finale and the ultimate banger "Michael Scofield" is truly riff city, and titled after the main character on Prison Break (y'know, that show that started off well but by season 3 most of us we're yawning considerably). Seriously, be sure you're sitting down or you might get dizzy with all them swirling riffs, especially the sweeps from 1:08. The multiple screaming on this track makes it the most screamo as well as the most proggy (eh the previous track is pretty dang proggy too) and bares some similarity to The Fall Of Troy and Terry Green. Damn, a five-track EP so good that I needed two paragraphs. Hats off to ya, ENTRANA.

I kinda fucked up and forgot to include this on my Best Of 2018 because, simply put, I forgot to transfer it onto the list of choices. Sorry friends. But! I have been informed that ENTRANA has an upcoming split with Opia (which shares the drummer of Snag), which hopefully you will be able to listen to for the first time right here on (((((OPENmind/SATURATEDbrain))))) soon.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2017 - Demo 2017 (Track 4) digital single (stream/donate/download here)

2018 - Jeffrey & The Last Monarch digitalEP (stream/donate/download here)

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(2018) ENTRANA - "Michael Scofield" (from 'Jeffrey & The Last Monarch')

(2018) ENTRANA - "Greasy Bags" (from 'Jeffrey & The Last Monarch')

(2018) ENTRANA - "The Wiseman Who Knows Nothing" (from 'Jeffrey & The Last Monarch')

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ENTRANA additional links

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***ALESKA + YAROSTAN exclusive song premieres***

YAROSTAN / ALESKA

"L'inertie du mouvement" & "Indispensables"
exclusive song premieres

For fans of: Daïtro, Viva Belgrado, Envy, La Parade, Rinoa, The Solexine Chapter, Marée Noire and Amanda Woodward

pre-order 2xLP split cassette from Zegema Beach Records:
U.S.A. store here
Canada/International here

What happens when two amazing screamo/post-hardcore bands from France ask your label to help release their LPs but you're short on cash? You do a split cassette with each band's LP on either side, I guess. Cuz that's what I did after I heard YAROSTAN's 'Yarostan' and ALESKA's 'Construire ou détruire' a month or two ago. Both bands deploy dual vocals, swelling post-hardcore with explosive screamo and remind me of Daïtro, but in different ways. The former branches into some clean vocals territory while retaining a driving, screamy and passionate foundation, and the latter reaches both ends of the heavy/soft spectrum but incorporates some harsher vocals and expansive arrangements. Honestly, both albums are fucking amazing and well worth your time.

The tapes from Zegema Beach Records are up for pre-order above and should ship in late April. I'm only making 50 copies as both bands have 12"s coming of their respective solo LPs. ALESKA crowdfunded their 12"s while YAROSTAN will self-release their solo tapes, cds, and have a whack of labels helping release their 12" which include: Bus Stop Press (Marseille), Crapoulet Records (Marseille), Smart & Confused (Paris), Seaside Suicide Records (Le Mans), Longrail Records (Carmagnola), DIY Bikepunk (Salamanca), Badmood Asso (Marseille) and Atlas Music. ALESKA's 'Construire ou détruire' will be available in full March 26th with the 12"s coming in late May, most likely, with order links coming any day now. The band recorded and mixed the record themselves in true DIY fashion, although honestly it sounds better than most in the production department. YAROSTAN's 'Yarostan' releases in full later this week.

(2019) YAROSTAN "L'inertie du mouvement" (from 'Yarostan')

This is the fourth of five tracks and is a wonderful balance of screamy Daïtro and French emo-pop like 12XU. There's a nice, soft intro that explodes at the 22-second mark and then switches back and forth between the singing and epic screams until 1:04 when the song hits full speed and you'll catch some similarities to another amazing French band by the name of Amanda Woodward. It chills out substantially by the halfway point and lush acoustic guitars weave a sleepy tapestry that puts the track to rest.

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(2019) ALESKA "Indispensables" (from 'Construire ou détruire')

This is the second of 8 tunes on the ALESKA side and holy shit is this song a banger. Opening with drums that meet up with a guitar every few seconds until the drumroll has every instrument, including screaming, latching on by the 25-second mark. There's a dual-vocal/dancey swing at the 50-second mark that floors me, and the urgency continues with a fantastic spacey riff layered over it the second time, not unlike Vi Som Älskade Varandra Så Mycket and Les Deux Minutes De La Haines. By the song's midsection we are met with a substantial slowdown, spoken word vocals and by about 2:13 the guitars fly back in like alien ships dancing in the night, twinkling and creating a beautiful auditory opus that climaxes at 2:55. This epic conclusion continues for almost a minute-and-a-half like a runner burning the take before the end of a run, and completely exhausts itself just past the finish line at 4:20.

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ADDITIONAL LINKS & WHATNOT

YAROSTAN review

YAROSTAN Metalorgie premiere

***COARSE exclusive interview***

An Interview with:

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On the cusp of their Japan Tour, I present an interview with drummer/vocalist Brandon Gallagher. Enjoy, and grab a 7" with the alternate /20 cover or the regular edition /300 here. That EP is so good that I listed it as my favourite EP of 2018, which you can check out here.

*1* Do you remember your first meeting / interaction with Ryan?
Truthfully no I don’t. Our old bands had played a couple one-offs together when we were both on the up and touring a fuck ton. We would just randomly rip a show together when our DIY tours would hit the same city on the same night. I THINK it was a show we played in Sylmar, CA in 2012 - like 45 minutes outside of LA in someone’s living room. My memory is shot haha. Either way he ended up becoming one of my best bros that I’ve met from touring, and for years after that we would hang in various cities, or when Capsize would come through they would always crash at my parents house in NJ.

*2* What was the first song you wrote together?

When him and I first talked about starting this band, Ryan had sent me like a minute of what ended up becoming “In Peril” via a text message, just a riff and a really cool drum part… and I was like yeah this fucking rules. It wasn’t until he came to NYC after working on a writing session in like Toronto or something that we really began writing. He and I both had some ideas so he crashed on my couch for a week and we wrote the whole 'I' EP pretty much in order. We just went through and was like “okay yeah this should come next”.

*3* How do you work out the lyrics and vocal patterns?
It’s an interesting system. I’m constantly writing lyrics, whether it’s full songs or just a couple lines - I have a text file on my phone that I constantly add to. We had written all of the music for 'I' without any lyrics or vocal patterns in mind. Once the EP was done, I just sent Ryan all of the lyrics I had “loosely” written for the EP after listening a bunch and then he worked his magic. He then sent back his vocal takes and I free-styled layers and parts over his, eventually cutting out what we didn’t want to use.

*4* What is your favorite Coarse song and why?
I really like the last two, "In Peril" and "No Heart". We wrote these songs in order of the EP so I think the song writing just got better as we progressed.

*5* Were any of the songs trickier than others to write, record, or play?
All of these songs are pretty tricky. Since Ryan and I do not live in the same state we definitely practice a lot in our spaces with headphones. Literally every time I finish a session I’ll text Ryan and be like “holy fuck why did we write these songs?” Haha.

*6* What would you define Coarse as, genre-wise?
I think the term “metal core” is a little played out. Everyone wants to be a “metal core” band but like a COOL “metal core” band. Okay I’ll stop with that term, but I like that some press called us “Feral Rock”. I think that is our genre.

*7* What bands have influenced Coarse the most thus far?
Going in to writing the EP I was really influenced by Some Girls - 'Heavens Pregnant Teens', and Fear Before the March of Flames - 'Art Damage'. Both of those records were my bible in terms of lyrics, riff ideas, drums, etc. Going into the new record I’ve been listening to a lot of Kiss It Goodbye, Ed Gein, Genghis Tron, and All Else Failed. There is also a lot of industrial and noise influence on the newer stuff so I’ve been listening to a lot of HIDE, Skinny Puppy, Youth Code, and Nine Inch Nails. It’s a little all over the place, but there are definitely elements that I can take from all of these bands.

*8* Did you want to reveal any info on…
I don’t want to go into super specifics, but I will say we have new music done, an EP specifically. We have a rad feature on it, and working on a couple more. Ryan and I started working on an LP too.

*9* You are touring Japan… do tell.
Yeah I’ve always wanted to tour Japan so this is truly a great honor. Japanese food and culture is some of my favorite so I’m really excited to just dive in and experience it all. Vision of Fatima is a rad band so I’m stoked to catch them every night as well.

*10* What is next for Coarse?
We’re dropping that EP in the spring. Touring Japan and Europe in March and April. Coming back in the late spring to finish writing and record and hopefully have an LP out by the year’s end.