UNDERDARK

Band: UNDERDARK

Genres: Punk / Post-Hardcore / Screamo / Black Metal / Post-Metal
Related artists: ?.
Country: Nottingham UNITED KINGDOM
Years Active: 2015-present
Song: "Bank of Roses"
Album: "Mourning Cloak"
Year: 2016
For fans of: Deafheaven, Old Soul, So Hideous, My Love, Between The Buried And Me, Tempest, Titan, The Pax Cecilia and NIC aka ██████.

Label(s): Self Released / Third I Rex
This post's artist is from the February 2017 Mix. This is track #7.

You can download: the February 2017 Mix#2 right here or get the new March 2017 Mix#3 here.

I was sent the UNDERDARK tracks in the spring/summer of 2016 and immediately thought two things:
1 - UNDERDARK is good.
2 - UNDERDARK likes Deafheaven.

The new Nottingham band has turned quite a few heads already with their three-song debut EP 'Mourning Cloak'. Opener "Bank of Roses" is the most Deafheaven of the three and it's also the best. Kicking in at 24 seconds with strong vocals as close to a Usurp Synapse scream as to the new Deafheaven LP. The rolling, thunderous drums and stellar chorus first hit at 1:13 but come back a few more times to drill that beauty in. Sandwiched in the middle is "Span of Black Nihility", the shortest of the tracks at 5:42 and is their most straightforward black metal song with a latter half of ambient post-metal. Closer "With Bruised & Bloodied Feet" opens with dark and demonic instrumentals with accentuating gutteral growls that cracks at 1:40 and begins to give way to some light. By just after the three-minute mark and again at four, the song shifts again and again, eventually fading into atmospheric post-rock by its 6:31 conclusion.

UNDERDARK currently wear their influences on their collective sleeve, but with the next release I'd expect a lot more of the band's true identity to manifest itself and I'm pretty darn excited about it.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2016 - Mourning Cloak cdEP (stream/donate/download here)

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(2017) UNDERDARK - Full Set (Adorno Records Birthday Bash)

(2016) UNDERDARK - "Bank of Roses" (from 'Mourning Cloak')

(2016) UNDERDARK - "With Bruised and Bloodied Feet" (from 'Mourning Cloak')

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UNDERDARK additional links

Bandcamp

Facebook

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ORNAMENTS

Band: ORNAMENTS

Genres: Punk / Post-Rock / Post-Hardcore / Post-Metal / Doom / Ambient / Sludge / Instru-metal
Related artists: Death Of Anna Karina and Dominance.
Country: ITALY
Years Active: 2003-present
Song: "Aer"
Album: "Pneumologic"
Year: 2013
For fans of: Tomydeepestego, Pelican, Russian Circles, Black Clouds, Omega Massif, Disappearer, Terraformer, Glasir, Shy, Low, Tusk, Goonies Never Say Die, 5ive, Town Portal, Quiet Lakes and Finger Of God.

Label(s): Self Released / Sangue Dischi / Escape From Today / Tannen Records / Blinde Proteus / Inri Torino
This post's artist is from the February 2017 Mix. This is track #10.

You can download: the February 2017 Mix#2 right here or get the new March 2017 Mix#3 here.

Back in the early 2000s The Death Of Anna Karina was a band that I was paying a lot of attention to, as I thoroughly enjoyed their abrasive and sassy screamy hardcore on '' It wasn't until I started this blog almost five years ago that a member of that band got in touch with me about his other, still active band, ORNAMENTS. After that I reviewed and interviewed The Death Of Anna Karina here. Sounding absolutely nothing like their previous outfit, ORNAMENTS play massive, sprawling, ambient and droney instru-metal. The songs are generally five to ten minutes in length, have no vocals and like most instru-metal bands, touch on post-rock, post-hardcore and post-metal.

In 2004 ORNAMENTS released their 'Demo' which houses four songs totaling a prodigious 36 minutes. These tracks are probably the lightest and most ambient by the band, but "4" sounds a heck of a lot like the first Pelican EP. And then...nothing for 7 years. The sophomore release was the bridge called 'EP' in 2011 and showed a better grasp of laying a uniform foundation and building on it using the blocks with the best fit, instead of choosing a block based on its individual attributes. Does that make sense? I guess I could just say they were more mature and patient. The excellent 'Pneumologic' LP followed in 2013 and houses seven songs, with the kicker "Aer" being used for a music video which is beautiful to watch. It should also be noted that at this point we are graced with vocals, as "L'ora del corpo spaccato" includes multiple vocalists in the first half of the song yellin'.

Upon writing this review I was graced with three new releases from the Italian instru-metal powerhouse. In 2015 they released a split 12" called 'Metamorphosplit' with Zeus! and it shows the sludier, darker progression that ended up on the 2016 material. The songs "Fractal" and "Perpetual Motion" are two of the band's best. And just last year ORNAMENTS went crazy releasing twice on Inri Torino and NOT posting those albums on the band's bandcamp page, thus eluding me until I started searching around. The first is a two-song EP titled 'Cymatic' that is pretty good, and includes a stellar opener featuring vocals from Lili Refrain that fit the music beautifully. This was a precursor to the very lengthy 8-track LP titled 'Drama'. This thing is a beast that includes some sludgy, crushing riffs as well as engaging, Russian Circles and Tomydeepestego-esque tranquil, ambient and melodic passages. "Oceano" and "Aeternal" bring on more vocals but again this release is almost purely instrumental. Be sure to check out the awesome song and video for "Promethus", the first embed below.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2004 - Demo EP (download here)

2011 - EP EP (stream/free download here)

2013 - Pneumologic 12"LP (stream/donate/download here)

2015 - Metamorphosplit 12"EP (split w/Zeus!) (stream/donate/download here)

2016 - Drama digitalLP (stream here)
2016 - Cymatic digitalEP (stream here)

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(2016) ORNAMENTS - "Prometheus" (from 'Drama') official music video

(2016) ORNAMENTS - "Zeus" (from 'Drama')

(2016) ORNAMENTS - "Chione (feat. Lili Refrain)" (from 'Cymatic') official music video

(2015) ORNAMENTS - "Perpetual Motion" (from 'Metamorphosplit')

(2013) ORNAMENTS - "Aer" (from 'Pneumologic') official music video

(2013) ORNAMENTS - "Pulse" (from 'Pneumologic')

(2011) ORNAMENTS - "Cassiopean" (from 'EP')

(2004) ORNAMENTS - "2" (from 'Demo')

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ORNAMENTS additional links

Download the 2004 'Demo' here

Bandcamp

Facebook

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I AM ALASKA

Band: I AM ALASKA

Genres: Punk / Rock / Post-Hardcore / Alternative
Related artists: ?.
Country: Doylestown, Pennsylvania USA
Years Active: 2008-2011
Song: "Death in a Silent Picture"
Album: "A Day in a Life"
Year: 2008
For fans of: At The Drive In, The Fall Of Troy, For The Mathematics, Hercules Hercules, Thursday, In The Name Of Havoc, (later) Hot Cross, Chiodos Bros., The Mars Volta, Protest The Hero, Glassjaw, Cold Craving, Saosin, Secret Arms, Face Tomorrow, The Blood Brothers, and Park.

Label(s): Self Released / No Sleep / Attic Records
This post's artist is from the February 2017 Mix. This is track #3.

You can download: the February 2017 Mix#2 right here or get the new March 2017 Mix#3 here.

I first became interested in I AM ALASKA when they released their debut EP (the first of three) in 2008. The driving post-hardcore was much akin to Thursday, Glassjaw, At The Drive In and Billy Talent and was able to catch my attention at the tail end of this musical phase of my life. That being said, I still really enjoy a few tracks from the aforementioned 'A Day in a Life' cd and can enjoy the latter two EPs as well. The first cd seems to be the rawest and projects the most passion, whether intentional or not. The track "Death in a Silent Picture" is my jam. This thing excels at using the vocalist's vast range to create some awesome melodies as well as some nice yellin', but I would be an ass not to mention the perfectly balanced instrumentals that go from soft and chill to crunchy and heavy in every song, as well as include a keyboard from time to time. "Proletariat" and "Ghost" are also excellent songs that

Upon writing this review, I came across the 2009 and 2011 EPs and am a little let down. They are good, but not great. Then again, my tastes have changed quite a bit so maybe I've just outgrown this sound. Regardless, 'To Elude the Architect' borders on being too poppy and a little cheesy but generally sounds like I AM ALASKA. 'So They Say' is pretty similar to the first two records and isn't really growth but acknowledging their strengths and refining them. To be honest all three releases could have been recorded in the same week and spread out over a few years and it wouldn't surprise me in the least. That's not a knock on the band, it's a statement that yields both positive and negative results. I AM ALASKA maximized those positive results on their debut EP, and more specifically "Death in a Silent Picture", so go check that out and decide for yourself.

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DISCOGRAPHY

2008 - A Day in a Life cdEP (stream/buy here)
2008 - No Sleep Till Christmas comp (contributed "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch")

2009 - To Elude the Architect cdEP (stream/buy here)

2011 - So They Say cdEP (stream/buy here)

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(2008) I AM ALASKA - "Death in a Silent Picture" (from 'A Day in the Life')

(2008) I AM ALASKA - "Proletariat" (from 'A Day in the Life')

(2008) I AM ALASKA - "Ghost" (from 'A Day in the Life')

(2008) I AM ALASKA - "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" (from 'No Sleep Till Christmas' comp)

(2009) I AM ALASKA - "Train Car" (from 'To Elude the Architect')

(2011) I AM ALASKA - "The Morning After" (from 'So They Say')

(2011) I AM ALASKA - "Sheep in Wolves Clothing" (from 'So They Say')

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I AM ALASKA additional links

Bandcamp

Facebook

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