For critics, placing
music into genres is often seen as a necessary evil. Everything has to sound
like something before it so that they can all fit neatly into the same labelled
folder together. For the most part this system works and any kind of music can
be fairly accurately described with just one genre tag. But every now and again
a band or musician comes along and just messes with the whole system. Amia
Venera Landscape is one of those bands.
While they may not be
able to claim complete originality, Amia Venera Landscape draw from so many
different influences that it’s nigh impossible to pin them down to just one
style. Perhaps the most immediate sound that comes to mind is that of
post-hardcore, and there are certainly enough Define the Great Line-era Underoath-sounding riffs and vocal
stylings for them to be classified as such. But what about that speed and
technicality in “Empire” that sounds like it could have been taken straight
from a Dillinger Escape Plan record? Or the atmospheric post-metal sections akin
to bands such as Isis and Rosetta? There is even a lengthy ambient passage that
constitutes much of the album’s midsection.
Music as diverse as
this always has the potential to sound over-the-top but Amia Venera Landscape
generally avoid falling into this trap. The songs are lengthy and progressive
but rarely does anything sound out of place. When the band delve head-first
into ambience with “Ascending,” it comes at just the right time; the previous
three tracks all revolve around the post-hardcore sound mentioned earlier and
“Ascending” is the perfect breather. Elsewhere, “Marasm” is perhaps the best
track on The Long Procession (tied
with “Empire”). A sprawling, near 15-minute instrumental based around epic
post-metal soundscapes, “Marasm” sees the band exploring a slightly longer
route to kicking your face in and the result is simply stunning. The song is
allowed to expand and build slowly and it reaps massive benefits from this. “Nicholas”
is the final piece of the puzzle and it really should have been the closer.
Instead, the album continues for another 10 minutes with a couple of somewhat
less impressive tracks. While they may not be bad songs per say, they aren’t
quite able to match up to the intensity of the previous eight compositions and
the added length just drags the album a little too far over a comfortable
running time. This is ultimately a minor complaint, however, for an otherwise
brilliant record.
I really couldn’t tell
you which genre Amia Venera Landscape falls under, but what I can tell you is
that this is one hell of an album that, if approached with an open-mind, you
certainly won’t regret listening to.
Rating: 8/10
(Originally posted on Sputnikmusic.com: http://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/56414/Amia-Venera-Landscape-The-Long-Procession/)