Comrades is a paradigm alterning band.
Their unique brand of post hardcore and post rock welded together, intense music with the contrasting calming vocals of Laura McElroy moves me in a way that few bands do nowadays.
Enter Lone/Grey.
Lone/Grey marks the beginning of a new era that has, in my opinion, paid their dues on the DIY/house show circuit and then some. The band has a new home, a new label, and to a certain degree a new sound. They live in Colorado Springs (after moving from Richmond, VA) and recently began a record deal with Facedown Records out of California. The shift in sound is most noteworthy though – we heard many more vocals than we are used to. Harsh and cleans from drummer Ben Russell dominate the album, alongside the trademark singing of Laura McElroy.
“In the Whisper, in the Gale” is a fitting opener for any Comrades album, embracing both their new direction while never veering far from the familiar feel that people fell in love with on their Blood and Ink release Safekeeper. Actually, the statement regarding the overall feel not straying far from what folks are familiar with holds true to the album. Yet, everything just feels more grand. In fact, I have a difficult time imagining how Comrades will follow up this album. Will they pull an M83 and realize that they can’t surpass the grandeur and just have fun (like M83 did with Junk, regarding the follow up to the widely esteemed Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming)? I’m glad we have a long wait to figure that out, because I’ll be entrenching myself in this album.
Regarding things being more grand, this is encapsulated well in the songs “Farewell” and “Brother(less).” The drums are more thunderous. The rhythms are more complex. The climax to “Farewell” is so thrilling I was clutching my face in disbelief the first time I heard it. The drumming in “Brother(less)” reminds me a bit of the quieter moments of August Burns Red’s “Internal Cannon,” which still isn’t really that quiet. And of course, the guitarwork of Joe McElroy (the guy whose brain has to have originated most of these carrying melodies) is on point, high energy, and might be genius.
This might sound like hyperbole, but I’m just a guy reacting to a record I enjoy.
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mArY-_ETOk4[/youtube]
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