Tides From Nebula

Earthshine

Written by: DR on 17/08/2011 16:09:05

Tides From Nebula's debut album, "Aura", was released in 2009 and apparently met with critical acclaim, and as a result ended up on a few best-of-the-year lists, especially within their home-country of Poland. That critical acclaim propelled the band considerably and gave them the opportunity to share the stage with some of the biggest names in post-rock, including This Will Destroy You, Caspian, God Is An Astronaut and Oceansize.

I know how cliche it may be to say so, but over recent years it seems that the popularity of post-rock has exploded, which means that with more and more bands trying their hand at it, it gets harder and harder for each to distinguish themselves from the next. Taking cues from bands like God Is An Astronaut, Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai and just about every other big-name in the genre, "Earthshine" is very much a post-rock album. In fact, I would go as far to say it is pretty much one of those albums you have heard before without actually having heard before.

But, that can be said of a lot of bands in the same field. For post-rock-philes, this doesn't need to be a drawback. For instance, the opener "These Days, Glory Days" has the cinematic opening, piano layered in the background suggestive of something epic, and eventual cinematic closing right out of God Is An Astronaut's playbook, the rolling drums of Explosions in the Sky, and the ringing-guitars of If These Trees Could Talk. Despite not being able to escape the clutches of these references, it doesn't actually hamper the overall experience of the song; it doesn't make the execution of the crescendo - which is what it's all about - any weaker.

Granted, "Earthshine" might have been a greater album if you didn't have the inkling that you've heard the conclusion of tracks like "Caravans" and "Siberia" before, in the sense that it would be more likely to catch you off-guard if they were more creative, and therefore, maybe, more likely to take your breath away. The high/low/crescendo-based structure may be one exploited to the nth degree, the guitar-lines and tones are typical, and the exploration of atmospheres inevitable. For some it is familiar but for others predictable, but sometimes you're not in the mood for something new, wild and adventurous, you just want something you know you will like. That's what "Earthshine" is: the proverbial vanilla of post-rock.

7

Download: These Days, Glory Days; Caravans; Siberia
For The Fans of: If These Trees Could Talk; pg.lost; Caspian; God Is An Astronaut
Listen: Myspace

Release Date 09.05.2011
Mystic Production

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