RUSSIAN CIRCLES - Guidance

Never take a band's survival for granted: not so much because of the human difficulty of keeping different personalities together over the years, but because of the pressing challenge of reinventing yourselves at every turn without losing your own identity, always emerging unscathed from the meat grinder of short-lived hype.

In a historical period where the wave of various instrumental post- bands that rose to prominence over the past decade seems to have taken root only among a handful of diehard fans, the case of Russian Circles remains only half a mystery: after a momentary impasse, the Chicago trio courageously decided to stay true to their stylistic trademark, taking all the time they needed to shape works of great power and evocative force, passing the tough test of time and passing trends.

A solid confirmation of the rekindled spark from three years ago was needed, and indeed "Guidance" doesn't betray the effective synthesis achieved on the solemn "Memorial". The first comments and reviews appearing online seem to agree in describing this latest work as fairly fatalistic, overall harsher and more visceral than its predecessors. On one hand, it's true that the album boasts perhaps a less contrived approach to composition, seizing various opportunities to fully unleash massive distortion ("Vorel") in a relentless interplay that combines the most dramatic moments of their second album "Station" with a doom-like darkness that almost brushes up against Godflesh.

Equally evident, however, is the never-forced alternation with the luminous visions of the new course weakly inaugurated by "Empros", by now developed by the trio with full awareness and no fear of revealing a sensitive side: we could rightly point to "Mota" as a rock version of the dreamy surges of port-royal; and then, with utter spontaneity, in "Afrika", an epic cadence reminiscent of Explosions In The Sky fades into a black metal riff driven in unison by roaring drums and bass.

With such inspired moves, Russian Circles pay for the physiological dips in tension and the resulting clichés in the more relaxed passages, yet still reach their first ten years of activity in a shape that's all things considered enviable compared to most of their peers.

Ride the wave of great music

Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.

Follow on Google

10/08/2016