Tuesday 23 June 2015

Coffinfish - I Am Providence (Album Review)

I Am Providence cover art

Album Type: Full-Length
Date Released: May 21st 2015
Label: Unquiet Records

I Am Providence - Track Listing:

1.Zadok Allen 04:31
2.The Expedition 08:44
3.Watchers 12:10
4.Against Life 09:25
5.Staring at the Abyss 12:06

Band Members

czapla - guitar
jasiek - keyboards
kołek - drums
lobo - vocals
michał - bass
prymas - guitar

Bio:

Founded in 2011, Coffinfish is still evolving, growing, and widening the scope of musical inspirations. Although staying within the scope of “weird fiction”, they’re not limited to one particular theme. Onirism, human mind, oceans, and mountains. I Am Providence is a follow‐up to the 2013 EP called Staring at the Abyss and is a huge step forward both musically and lyrically.

Review:

Coffinfish is an Experimental Sludge/Post-Metal band that takes influence from ISIS, Neurosis and Cult Of Luna. Their debut album – I Am Providence – more than establish Coffinfish to give a damn about in the Sludge/Post-Metal world as their take on Sludge/Post-Metal has intelligence and brawn to match. Shades of Post-Rock are used throughout the album with the heavier Sludge/Post-Metal brutality holding the destructive mood altogether.

Opening track – Zadok Allan – has a slight Pelican influence but Coffinfish offer a more brooding and darker style that Pelican haven't been able to match for their last few releases. Coffinfish aren't an instrumental post-metal band but they prove they can offer a different take on instrumental post-metal if they ever decide to go down that route in the future. A great track to open the album with.

Second track – The Expedition – sees the real Coffinfish arrive with slabs of heavy pounding sludge metal riffs and shattering vocals to match. The band offer a bleak insight to the realm of Atmospheric Sludge. It's good to see a band play to their influences but still showing the world they break through on their own terms and vision. And that's what Coffinfish have achieved here. A stunning bleak vision against a pissed-off hardcore/sludge backdrop that only adds to the angry and volatile atmosphere that the band have created. Coffinfish add subtle hints of ambient post-rock to soothe your senses but this is a false sense of security as the band unleash their true identity and musical vision for everyone to witness.

Coffinfish create epic volatile moods of nature than songs as each song feels like the whole world is coming to an end and there is nothing that we can do about but just watch the end of the world. With scientists having just announced that the world is in the midst of a Sixth Mass Extinction then Coffinfish have created the perfect album to play out as the soundtrack to the end of the world. It's a bleak and unflinching vision that you can't help but witness.

Third track Watchers opens up with a lengthy post-rock/post-metal instrumental riff that lasts for days before shades of Ambient Noises and sounds pile on the misery until Lobo's vocals kick in and pile on the misery. It's possibly the darkest track on the album and one that will leave you feeling slightly depressed by it all. This is one of the most gruelling and punishing songs I've listened to this year but it's still a powerful ride I can't recommend highly enough.

The remaining two tracks on the album – Against Life and Staring At The Abyss – carries on the gruelling Sludge/Post-Metal riffage as Coffinfish leave no stone unturned leaving your life slightly more depressing but it's one dark and unforgettable ride that will appeal to long-time fans of ISIS and Neurosis. The instrumental work is stunning throughout the album. Coffinfish definitely earn their rising reputation within the Sludge/Post-metal scene.

Do yourself a favour and hunt this album down as it's a superb debut album. Coffinfish deserve your attention and more. This album is a powerful ride into the unknown. Lets see what future twisted works of art that Coffinfish will come up for us in the future. Spellbinding and brilliant. End Of.

Words by Steve Howe

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