Together To The Stars - As We Wither Review
Only a year later, we find ourselves with As We Wither, and it seems that for whatever reason the album titles this year are incredibly poignant, with this one being no exception. It's almost as if the musicians saw it coming, or have named their releases due to the conditions our world is in (I'm looking at you, Haken). This, however, is deservedly so, as this is a much bleaker release than their prior effort, with far more somber and sinister guitar parts over the six tracks. This LP just barely inches out its predecessor on runtime and adds an extra cut into the mix. But don't let this discourage you, the songs on here are just as awesome and emotionally raw as the ones that exceeded 10 minutes on the last one.
"Respire" was the first single from this album, and I don't have much to say that I have not said one million times over. Together To The Stars' use of minor chord progressions and reasonably simple guitar work is so powerful and emotional on each and every track they release, with this as no exception. Upon hearing this single earlier in April, any doubts of this being a fantastic album faded away (for better or worse). Additionally, multi-instrumentalist David Steinmarck's drums go from classic blast beats to groovy ride sections to inventive fills so naturally on this cut, that one could almost be mesmerized by the instrumentation alone. But Franco Fuentes' vocal chops on this track are some of his best ever. As raw and sentimental as on An Oblivion Above, the entirely harsh song greatly brings out feelings of intense longing and sadness, which is exactly what the group is going for.
Compositionally, this cut is exceptionally straightforward, as most of the track on As We Wither are. Where their previous effort sported great dynamic shifts and massive builds to epic climaxes, this album is relatively consistent in its direct approach. This is one of the three issues with this release. While not detrimental in my enjoyment of the record, I personally enjoy climax-focused music (which there still some of here) much more than a constant aural onslaught. But what I can say, is the band's pacing has greatly improved, as I would not have expected them to write like this ever. My second issue with the album is one that I really don't want to talk about. I really like this album, and this band as a whole, so it feels bad to criticize. The post-hardcore vocals on the next track, "Bioluminescence," totally take me out of the song. They are brief, occupying only two quick sections before the two-minute mark. Fuentes' clean vocal that opens the track up is surprisingly strong, keeping up with the emo and sadboi sound that the band emanates. But, it is those which follow immediately after that I cannot listen to. This also really opened my eyes to the influence of that genre on the traditional blackgaze that Together To The Stars produces, which usually comes in the atmosphere and emotion conveyed through every instrument.
QUICK POST-HARDCORE TANGENT - I am not a fan of most post-hardcore (ie. I love At The Drive-In, The Drowned God, some of envy, some of Idles, etc.) and a lot of it is the vocals. Modernly, at least, groups like Touché Amoré and Dance Gavin Dance have extremely proficient musicians behind them, but ruin it with often whiny, sometimes processed cleans and half-hearted harshes that is really hard to listen to for someone who listens to a ton of harsh vocals.
But back to Together To The Stars; Fuentes' take on that style of vocal is very accurate, if not more guttural and emotional, and like I said before, short-lived. Yet this alone briefly removes me from the song, which sucks. Something I also noticed at this point in the tracklist is how much louder the vocals are mixed on this release compared to An Oblivion Above (not necessarily negative, but definitely a big change for the group). However, "Bioluminescence" is still one of my favorite songs on the album. Now I know I just shit on this very quick section of the song, but let me stake another claim. Immediately after these post-hardcore harshes is a soaring hook with the familiar guttural harsh that is extremely intense emotionally, and frankly stunning to behold. They occur twice (once after each vocal that I just described) and throw me right back into orbit for the song. From here is a track extremely similar to "Apathy," with relatively dynamic sections and repetition of the awesome hook established at the beginning of the track. I really love this track even with its fault, which would only enhance my enjoyment if I liked the emulated vocals early on, and that's why it is one of my favorites.
"Wither" follows and was the second single released in anticipation for As We Wither, so it contributed in my excitement for the record, and wow, it is strong. The most despondent among their discography, this song is relentless in its black metal instrumentation and ferocious in its somber chord progression and vocal performance. This song is also notably the first song in their catalog with partly Swedish lyrics, which when translated, are extremely nihilistic, even for the group. 'Epic' is probably the best way I can describe this track, as its atmosphere is so sinister and calamitous that its multiple climactic builds leave me almost short of breath. Together To The Stars cement this album's place in my heart with this track, and we still have three more to go.
From here, while it would be a gross overstatement to say the album flounders, the next cuts hit just a minuscule bit less than the others. "Forgotten Tongue" is very similar to "Oblivion" (almost too similar) in structure but is still pretty intense nevertheless. I don't want to describe the track as 'average Together To The Stars,' but that is what it is. Now, before you analyze that too deeply, the bar is set extremely high, and this song, as well as "Som hängandes från världen" and "Endeavor," are able to jump to it, just arguably not as high as the other tracks. Speaking of "Som hängandes från världen," or 'Like Hanging From The World,' this is the album's "Shrine," except without the Nirvana influence. Sounding much more akin to the 'traditional' TTTS song, it's a fine three-minute breather before the closer, which is definitely needed at this point in the tracklist, as it was on their previous effort.
The finale, "Endeavor," is a suitable closer, and while not the strongest cut, pulls together all the aspects of the album nicely. It also has a stellar melodic guitar lead that drives the track throughout its eight-minute runtime. Here shows my third issue with the album, however: I wish these tracks were longer. Its a little harsh to say that, as each and every song feels very well written and placed within the tracklist, but coming from the 10+ minute cuts on An Oblivion Above, I just wish there was a little more to all of these tracks. While it's a somewhat nitpicky issue, but something I feel I should add.
If An Oblivion Above is a 9.5, As We Wither is a 9. Both albums are amazing artistic statements in their own rights and it doesn't fall into the same trap that, at the time, I felt last year's Astronoid release yielded; While some of the magical originality has runoff from their first release, it is still a jaw-dropping effort of magnificently executed blackgaze. Producing some of the most emotional and alluring metal on the market right now, Together to the Stars is, and has been, a band on the rise.
Final Verdict: Will someone major just sign these guys already? We love Northern Silence, but these guys deserve it all.
Favorite Tracks: "Wither," "Bioluminescence," "Respire"
FFO: Deafheaven, Harakiri For The Sky, Alcest
Track List:
1. "Respire"
2. "Bioluminescence"
3. "Wither"
4. "Forgotten Tongues"
5. "Som hängandes från världen"
6. "Endeavor"
You can support the band on their Bandcamp.
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