reviews / 2022

ROLO TOMASSI - Where Myth Becomes Memory

Name: ROLO TOMASSI – Where Myth Becomes Memory
Item: Where Myth Becomes Memory
Rating: 7
Author: Martina Vetrugno

2022 (Mnrk)

avant-metal, mathcore, post-hardcore

by Martina Vetrugno

The final chapter of the ideal trilogy made up of the previous "Grievances and Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It", "Where Myth Becomes Memory" confirms the band's determination to pursue an analytical, controlled approach for the Rolo Tomassi, and it was released on MNRK after the band's sudden split with Holy Roar, following harassment allegations against founder Alex Fitzpatrick.

The Sheffield quintet fronted by Eva Korman chooses to play mainly on a terrain between post-hardcore and post-metal, repeatedly softened by melodic lines and layers of dream-pop, further expanding the melting pot of influences that, since their debut, has made them extremely versatile and hard to pin down.

The album opens with the ethereal atmospheres and light piano of “Almost Always”, which progressively build up, blending shoegaze elements à-la Slowdive with post-rock, offering a possible link to “Risen”, the closing track of the band's previous record. Eva alternates growls and melodic parts as usual on standout tracks like “Cloaked”, made up of a first section where Al Pott's tight, intricate drumming stands out and a coda dominated by electronic flourishes, and “Mutual Ruin”, where the sleight of hand between drums and piano suddenly shifts to let the guitars emerge, before settling down in the finale, rounding off an effective opening trio of tracks.

“Labyrinthine” unleashes a death-leaning aggression, while the sensitivity of “Closer” grants a bit of breathing room before “Drip”, a track marked by the frantic, obsessive polyrhythms typical of progressive metalcore, steeped in a layered sound and industrial influences, details which, together with a reflective and impactful lyric, help make it the album's high point.

To strike before it’s all too late

Put to rest, all souls are safe

Existing in the maze

Memory is imperfect

Take my hand, let’s slip beneath the surface

The grind blasts of “Prescience” fade into slow but intense post-metal rhythms, which slip into the brief, stark dream-pop piano ballad “Stumbling”, before charging back with the violent “To Resist Forgetting” and closing with the luminous “The End Of Eternity”.

“Where Myth Becomes Memory” comes across as a solid continuation of Eva Korman and co.'s path, even more balanced than its predecessors and consequently perhaps a touch too rigid, but no less satisfying for it, being (once again) technically flawless and backed by lyrics of high quality.

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15/12/2022

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This article is an English translation of the original Italian text by Martina Vetrugno, published on OndaRock.it. It was translated with the help of artificial intelligence, under the editorial responsibility of OndaRock's editor-in-chief, Claudio Fabretti.

Read the original in Italian · About the English edition