Words by Elijah P. Founded in 2015, progressive rock-slash-math rock trio As Silent As The Forest have personalized their arsenal into something more vigorous compared to holding-hands-in-the-air, tree-hugging milquetoast math rock bands out there. For a band that’s premised behind tree stumps, inserting atmospheric passages about the wilderness and the likes, ASATH have more what others bargained for in their latest EP titled “Tranquility”. As the title suggests, there’s more to peaceful riffages and swells than most advocates assume. In tracks like “Young Blood”, the band embodies indiemo sentimentality all the while armoring themselves with heavier lead tunings, deeper bass lines and masterful drumwork. The kick-off track “Unsaid” and its opening lines imply a fearless attitude, far from standing beyond the precipice of math rock’s cliches. There’s an even balance of calls for mercy and emotive vocal deliveries, making it border between a post-hardcore and math rock project. Rarely a divisive choice of thematic sound can come across as consistent but ASATH have done it in a way where they’ve told a story while simultaneously packing a catchy chorus or two. However, in the grand scheme of things, “Tranquility” can become lopsided by its contrasting tracks and almost identical song structures. As much as there are odd timing and tunings made in the record, the record can quite become tedious in continuous listening sessions, that’s if the listener doesn’t pay too attention to its devilish and sonically inherited details. The title track attempted to deviate from the tracklisting before it by adding an intense double kick drum – which in retrospect barely acts as a motif that helps elevate the track’s themes. By the last track titled “Dark Days”, the EP has turned itself into a full on post-hardcore record with guitars tuned lower compared to other tracks. That is where the project starts to fall flat on its head. As Silent As The Forest’s first ever EP stands on its own, but it barely stands out as a one-of-a-kind record that defines the movement. “Tranquility” has some highs when they’re paid close attention. The project has its lows when listened to as a wholly math rock record. Support the art & the artist:
Author: Louis Pelingen
EP REVIEW: Chimera Mix – My Pet Rat
Written by Louis Pelingen Sometimes, musicians can get very productive, which can result in them putting out multiple records or EPs that contain distinct or experimental ideas, both in the production and composition side. This gets frequent in the modern underground scene, where their work ethic, lack of label presence, or even just having an ear for creating melodic structures out of the gate allows them to put out music in a ballistic state of mind. In these cases, it is interesting to see how their musical output remains consistent across the board and how their growth keeps sustaining with every record they put out, especially with that kind of musical force they belt out. Introducing Chimera Mix, the musical side project of 17-year old Patorikku who hails from Paranaque, who also goes under the YouTube channel moniker under the Patorikku name that focuses on eerie creepypasta-esque videos dipped with a VHS aesthetic that’s pretty much the trend these days. His musical output under Chimera Mix is downright impressive, to say the least. While it does encounter the issue of being bloated, the fact that he has 9 records under his belt blitzing through indie rock, psychedelic pop, hypnagogic pop, and even hard rock with creative melodic and instrumental tendencies he can pull out in thin air is just remarkable. And on this EP that was released last month, Chimera Mix wastes no time concocting 4 tracks that dabble in his usual hypnagogic and psychedelic pop weirdness which ends up being a fascinating peak in his career so far. ‘Prelude’ introduces the listener to soothing atmospherics that breaks down with these hypnotizing synth, drum, and guitar melodies just before it slows down and eventually concludes into these relaxing vocal harmonies. ‘My Pet Rat’ is a jaunty cut that contrasts the downbeat lyrics of the protagonist’s guilt of his dead rat as the instrumentation shuffles and progresses into a pure frenzy, especially the piano work and the brass instrument thrown into the chaos. ‘Tommy’ provides similar melodic and vocal zaniness as the last track paired with existential, dark lyrics and some Beatles worship in the mix coming from the guitar solo and the piano work. It ends off with ‘215 – 300 Version’, a song that was in his 2019 record, Pliocene. It retains the original dream-like aesthetic from that record with the fleeting synthesizers that develop even further, paired with a surreal and bleak lyricism that ends the EP on a mysterious note thematically, but on a satisfying note musically. While Chimera Mix has afforded to create fascinating melodic and instrumental twists and turns in his past records, ‘My Pet Rat’ EP has shown his musicianship at a state of refinement that continues to impress me, even with the creative strides that he has showcased on his past albums. He’s a trickster with dozens of tricks up his sleeves. And with this EP, he’s someone you might want to pay attention to in the future, for you’ll never know what kinds of exciting magic he’ll put out next. Support the art & the artist: