By: Victor Van Ommen
Album Type: Full Length
Date Released: 06/10/2017
Label: Ipecac Recordings
Be it the
album’s title, the heft of the cascading guitar riffs, or the thick atmosphere
the band creates, this is a serious release that’s here to make a statement. “Seismic” is an album that’s easy to get lost
in, which judging by the depth of sound, is exactly what Spotlights set out to
do.
“Seismic” CD//DD//LP track
listing:
1. Seismic
2. Learn to Breathe
3. The Size of the Planet
4. Ghost of a Glowing Forest
5. Under the Earth
6. A Southern Death
7. The Opening
8. What is This? Where Are We?
9. Hollow Bones
10. Hang Us All
11. The Hope of a Storm
The Review:
New York- based, husband and wife duo Spotlights wants nothing less than to be taken seriously on
their Ipecac Recordings debut album, “Seismic.” Be it the album’s title, the
heft of the cascading guitar riffs, or the thick atmosphere the band creates,
this is a serious release that’s here to make a statement. Everything is mapped
out; there are no false steps, no room for improvisation, just a hefty slab of
post-metal-whatever rock music. And you know what, it’s damn good!
Musically, Spotlights has a few
obvious influences – I’m looking at you Deftones and ISIS – but that shouldn’t be a surprise considering the
label the band is on. Luckily, Spotlights uses these
two bands as just that, influences, and prevents the band coming across as a
watered down band confined to a particular time and genre.
It’s the layers that make Spotlights
what they are. They hit loud and hard at face value and that’s great. The
guitar riffs are crunchy and slow and the drums are in your face. Everything is
turned up real loud, which is exactly how the album should be listened to. Once
the volume is turned up and the listener sits back, that’s when Spotlights really starts to unfold.
Spotlights is able to put all the tools at their disposal to good
use. Be it in the way the synthesizers accentuate the tenderness in the fat
riffing or how the sound of strummed guitar strings deep in the mix help
round things out, “Seismic” becomes a
release that’s as tall as it is wide. The hour plus run time might be a touch
on the long side of things, but when there’s so much mood and atmosphere, an
album’s run time becomes insignificant pretty quickly.
Understanding “Seismic”
means understanding the layers. The songs are there and the sound is big. Spotlights make their presence known with these elements.
Then the accents are found; the synthesizers are well placed and the vocals
provide just that bit of necessary breathing room. “Seismic” is an album that’s easy to get lost in, which judging by
the depth of sound, is exactly what Spotlights set out to
do.
“Seismic” is available here
