‘The Rifts’ is the second album from Swedish duo A Swarm of the Sun, and it’s described as ‘bleak and beautiful journey through the innermost landscapes of the heart and soul’. The tracks are given space to breathe, time to expand and unfurl: the nine-minute ‘Infants’ drags at the emotions while evolving to form an immense sonic vista before breaking out to a raging torrent of guitars around the mid-point.
‘Incarceration’ is a heavy yet emotive trudge while ‘The Warden’ hangs lugubriously and although the instrumental passages dominate the vocal anyway, purely instrumental pieces like the delicate piano interlude ‘Years’ add a strong dynamic to the album and balance the epic guitar-driven tracks. The heavily cyclical build of the title track is stylistically redolent of contemporary Swans, while ‘These Depths Were Always meant for Both of Us’ is a towering crescendo-laden monolith of a track with the vocals hushed, cracked and weary at the end.
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It all adds up to an album that’s powerful and outstanding in every way.
A Swarm Of The Sun Online
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