East of the Wall - Ressentiment
Rating
RIYL
The Postman SyndromeBiclops
Day Without Dawn
Release Date
07/20/2010
Label
Translation LossTracklist
1. The Ladder2. Salieri
3. Fool's Errand
4. Wisp Of Tow
5. Ocean Of Water
6. It's Always Worthwhile Speaking To A Clever Man
7. Fleshmaker
8. Maybe I'm Malaised
9. A Long Defeat
10. Gordian Corridor
11. Handshake In Your Mouth
12. Don't Stop Bereaving
13. Beasteater
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The demise of The Postman Syndrome spawned three groups - Day Without Dawn, Biclops and East of the Wall. The latter two merged earlier this year and collaborated to produce Ressentiment, the official follow-up to East of the Wall’s instrumental and genre-defying release Farmer’s Alamanac. The consolidation of the two collectives led to East of the Wall’s addition of vocalists Chris Alfano and Kevin Conway, a rather dramatic change for a formerly instrumental group, and one that sees the group expanding their sound and continuing down the path forged on their debut.
As on Farmer’s Almanac, East of the Wall flows seamlessly between jazzy leads and thunderous riffing, making it difficult to pigeonhole the group into one genre. If forced, one might be apt to label them as a progressive metalcore group with the tendency to lapse into spacey atmospherics. The band manages to blend the cathartic aggression of early Cave In with the dreamy overtures of Day Without Dawn and, occasionally, Dredg. Alfano’s distinct crooning is instantly recognizable from his time with Day Without Dawn and provides an uplifting tone reminiscent of Dan Barrett’s performance with In Pieces. The melodicism of his vocals provides a distinct counterpoint to the powerful, though somewhat monotonous, screams of Conway, which lend themselves to the album’s heavier moments but sound slightly out of place on its more introspective passages.
Melodic interludes “It’s Always Worth Speaking to a Clever Man,” “Maybe I’m Malaised” and “Gordian Corridor” put the group’s ethereal tendencies on full display, while tracks like “The Ladder” and “Fleshmaker” show that the group’s sound, despite its progressive nature, keeps one foot firmly planted in the aesthetics more commonly found on metalcore releases. The off-kilter opening riff of “Handshake In Your Mouth” could easily appear on the next Converge release, while several moments throughout the album bring to mind the heavier moments from the equally bipolar group The Ocean.
Ressentiment is a challenging listen due not only to the extended length of several tracks, but also to the complexity of the music found within. It’s rare to hear such divergent styles executed at the high level that East of the Wall have managed to reach with this album. While the group’s decision to include vocals can be questioned, there is no arguing that their musical prowess is unsurpassed by any other band attempting to play music in this vein. With their lineup momentarily solidified, East of the Wall’s next release has the potential to expand upon the flashes of brilliance shown on Ressentiment and find the perfect balance between their two opposing personalities.
--Matt Murphy
Comments
London, UK
Ah you Bastard....I really want to hear this! Personally I prefered Biclops to the plain instrumental sound so am glad they incoporated the two bands.
Currently listening to:
Tetrafusion - Horizons EP
NAMI - Fragile Alignments
Fleshgod Apocalypse - Agony
A Hope For Home - In Abstraction
Blindead - Affliction XXIX II MXMVI
Atascadero, CA
i love how this review was posted 22minutes ago and is already 3rd item down in a google search for "east of the wall ressentiment review" still movin on up.
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Minnesota
These guys are playing at an art gallery that's only a 15 minute bike ride from my house on Saturday. I'll have to go check them out.
Find me EVERYWHERE:
Wilmington DE
awesome...cant wait to here this
Listening to:
Tides of Man
Oceansize
The Contortionist
We are the City
Periphery
Coral Gables, FL
saw them three months ago with Goes Cube with just my girlfriend and one other person there. one of the best live bands i have ever seen and i'm really excited to give this a listen. they deserve any success they get.
PA
This reminds me so much of Intronaut which is a good thing! Digging the production on the drums a lot.
Music Blog.
Depths blog. (my band)
Infinitely Inwards
Amazing album....this is how you do metalcore with post influences.
Ever Forthright - Ever Forthright
Fallujah - The Harvest Wombs
The New Law - The Fifty Year Storm
ERRA - Impulse
Aborted - Global Flatline
Steven Wilson - Grace for Drowning
Crippled Black Phoenix - (Mankind)The Crafty Ape
PA
I was digging this a lot and then I just got real bored with it. It may grow though.
Music Blog.
Depths blog. (my band)
Minnesota
I think this is their best work yet. Love the addition of the vocals. Reminds me a lot of the good parts of Intronaut and The Ocean.
Find me EVERYWHERE:
Dallas, TX
Never heard of this band before I read this review but after a couple of listens to their album, I'm totally loving it. I agree with Rick this reminds a lot of my favorite parts of Intronaut.
Wilmington DE
is intronaut really this technical? I thought they were more post-rockish....maybe Im getting them mixed up with another band.
Listening to:
Tides of Man
Oceansize
The Contortionist
We are the City
Periphery
Miami, FL. U.S.A
London, UK
Had to bump this up to a 4.5*, definitely rewards repeated listens. This and Devil Sold His Soul are just on permanent repeat right now
Currently listening to:
Tetrafusion - Horizons EP
NAMI - Fragile Alignments
Fleshgod Apocalypse - Agony
A Hope For Home - In Abstraction
Blindead - Affliction XXIX II MXMVI