 Epic music has taken a turn for the better recently. Bands like Isis, Jesu and Sun0))) have suddenly become more popular, innovative and original that ever. You only have to catch a few local scenes to find that it’s catching on too. More young, up-and coming bands are being inspired by what can only be described as “Big Sounds”, but where the aforementioned are all veterans in their field, Pelican are still young and experiencing a learning curve. They’ve been there for a while, but have never had the acceptance of, for instance, Isis, and, in all honestly, too right. Previous Pelican releases have pretty much all contained very slow, heavy riffs that make them sound like a better than average stoner/sludge metal band. With this album, Pelican hope to change all that.
Where as their debut LP 'Australasia' went down the route of
"making a big riff, then expanding it, again," 'The Fire in Our Throats
Will Beckon the Thaw' has so much variation yet stays so true to their
sound that you can’t help but love it. They are finally showing their
potential to a larger extent and challenging the likes of Isis by
creating such an uplifting, rewarding listen that still stays with in
the "stoner/sludge" boundaries.
This album is separated into two and a
half parts. The first songs make up part one – a 30 minute trip through
the winter, autumn and summer seasons. They are what drag you down.
Ironically, it is the opener, ‘Last Day of Winter’, that is the most
upbeat, where as most people would class summer as a “happy time”. It
gets more and more downtrodden, spiralling into heavier and heavier
riffs until it becomes quite solemn.
The whole point of epic music is to create a journey
for the listener. This is what this album does, which without vocals,
becomes and even more impressive task. It takes you downwards until the
middle of the album; an untitled acoustic song of 4:43 (short for a
Pelican song) which represents the lowest point of the album. Then
comes the second (real) part of the album; another three songs which
gets more upbeat by track. 'Red Ran Amber' kicks it off very slowly,
but is the song that shows there is a light at the end of the tunnel,
as you notice that it becomes very heart-warming.
It is simply jaw-dropping stuff. It's a journey you'll
want to experience over and over again, and you will notice new things
each time. It may not be an obvious choice, but this is the real album
of the summer. You only have to listen to the concluding track,
'Sirius', to feel euphoric. The whole journey leads you to a song which
not only accomplishes the feat of being a fantastic song, but it keeps
the earlier pattern together, and also perfectly sums up what Pelican
have become. If it were possible for Pelican to write a pop song, this
would be it. Starting with a haunting guitar sound and a luring bass
line respectively, it takes a short tour through what you’ve
experienced within a slightly familiar upbeat riff that just makes you
feel great. It is the perfect end to a flawless album.
The only thing this album
really makes you question is "what could they do to beat this?" and
that’s what makes Epic music so enthralling: you have no idea what the
band or artist will do next.
Adam Turner-Heffer |
| Coding: Darren Burrows