Pelican
City Of Echoes

Dark, massive, industrial producers of bone-crushing riffs, powerful yet at times monotonous. Following "Australasia" and "The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thaw," in which the Illinois group experimented and "lived" in the realms of doom, with City of Echoes, the musical proposition leans more towards true sludge, with some even thrash inserts and light (and brief) excursions into modern post-rock. Their instrumental music leaves no escape: moments of lightness are few but well-balanced within an album that has sudden bursts of genius and at the same time an immense amount of riffs that build upon themselves, forcefully trying to bring out the most powerful and fitting to the melody.

I confess that I've discovered them recently and not delving much into their discography is a fault I'll try to correct: yet, despite the criticisms I've heard directed at this album, I've decided to listen to it first, and while the result is certainly not a masterpiece that will remain in the annals, the total is nonetheless an enjoyable product and not too demanding in terms of duration (especially compared to past ones).

The sound becomes more direct and less refined, and thanks to remarkable sound clarity, we can fully savor every little detail of the album. An album that starts with the negligible "Bliss in Concrete" and continues more worthily with the title track, with a soft beginning that explodes into a multitude of sonic bursts that interweave. For "Spaceship Broken - Parts Needed", the opening is almost reminiscent of a modern space rock, here mixed with the power of metal. Folk digression in "Wind with Hands" where the sound remains metallic, sci-fi. After that, a total drop reaching a peak with the tacky guitar of "Lost in the Headlights" that manages to recover just in time with the conclusive "A Delicate Sense of Balance", evoking God Is an Astronaut for the lightness of the composition, although Pelican sound indeed more "dark".

City of Echoes is a good album of instrumental metal/sludge that abounds in riffs. Pelican have the great ability to easily transport you to far places, whether they are the deepest seas or the roaring mouths of erupting volcanoes...

1. "Bliss In Concrete" (5:29)
2. "City Of Echoes" (7:05)
3. "Spaceship Broken - Parts Needed" (6:03)
4. "Wind With Hands" (3:55)
5. "Dead Between The Walls" (5:05)
6. "Lost In The Headlights" (4:09)
7. "Far From Fields" (5:18)
8. "A Delicate Sense Of Balance" (5:24)