Album Review | Post Death Soundtrack Show Ambition On It Will Come Out of Nowhere
Equal parts industrial, metal, psychedelic, and just plain alien, It Will Come Out of Nowhere is the latest brainchild of Canadian duo, Post Death Soundtrack.
Several tracks are powered by a threatening synth undercurrent, reminiscent of sci-fi soundtracks like Blade Runner and Perfect Dark. Vocally, things extend from Reznor-esque death howls to panicked, anxious melodies and subdued melancholy.
The abrasive approach taken by the duo produces mixed results which can be over ambitious and excessive at times. Sometimes the formulation is just right. Like on ‘Expect No Sympathy’, fusing manic piano melodies, eastern guitar riffs, harrowing bells, and aggressive vocals. The pair have a knack for building upon a loop or core idea, wrapping imaginative supporting lines to create an epic musical monument.
‘Ripples in the Living Dream’ goes full metal sci-fi. Adrenaline-pumped beats and harmonic, minor synth bass lines segue into monstrous metal riffs. The vocals have a watery effect layered over them, further adding to the alien feel of the piece.
‘Ramona Hills’ takes a step into soundscapes, including background reverb washes, birds tweeting, and a slowly meandering pipe drone. At times, it feels akin to some of Hiroshi Yoshimura’s Zen-levels of meditative ambience, acting as a serene pause between the ferocious sections of this album.
‘Piercing the Veil’ is an example of the overly ambitious side of their work. Seven minutes in length, punctured by spoken word samples, this one sticks to a growling drone before fading off into a Sunn-O style wall of riffs. By the time it reconnects to a melody, the track feels like a disjointed amalgamation of ideas not quite fitting. Unfortunate, as the ideas did have merit as individual sections.
Album closer, ‘Bridge Burner’, makes up ten-fold, however. Here, double bass drum kicks lay the mechanical framework for dramatic octave slides on gain-heavy guitars. This is interspersed with vocal-tearing screams that feel right at home on this record. The mid-section breakdown is a soupy mix of dirty, breathy metal riffs, and choral vocals. Snaking along, the track regains its pace piece by piece, with vocals and lyrics like an evil Jim Morrison leading the charge:
“I’ll be the shape-shifter, I’ll be the veil lifter”
It Will Come Out of Nowhere is a crowd-parting LP, no doubt. An industrial canvas with many shades of experimentation cast upon it, it may come across as too edgy and contrived for some, but such music has always inspired black and white views.
3.5/5
