Deafheaven "New Bermuda"

Not since I discovered Comity have I been interested in exploring a collection of half a dozen tracks that clocks in well over the forty minute mark. Right out the gate with "Brought to the Water" it's more of the same lush riffage and persistent blast beats we've all come to expect. The leads throughout the track and the songs that follow sure do lure you in, but it's really more about the ability to get through each tune keeping in the same theme as it began. The vocals roam in the same department as Sunbather and you really have to hand it over to the guys for being able to churn out another collection of the same chaotic madness that was found on the two releases that came before. Although frontman George Clarke seems to be a one trick pony, the angle continue to prove to be fitting and I don't really have any recommendations as to what they could do differently.This just really seems to be what they're good at and all they've got. It's a solid listen from an eclectic band that brings color to the Deathwish catalogue. I'm not sure why shoegazing continues to be a term associated with the band as their melodic parts and strums sound more like what Codeseven was doing in their Division of Labor days and I think we used to just call that hardcore. I also don't agree with the band's constant promotion of the black metal genre. The band is hardly that. How is "Baby Blue" black metal? Just because blast beats and raptor vocals serenade the album, the themes and insights explored as well as the overall atmosphere present a sound that I'd prefer to call aggressive melodic beauty metal. So it might sound a bit over the top, but then again shoegazing doesn't really tell you anything about the music besides bringing to mind that South Park scene where the goth kids are showing Stan how they dance. I don't think this has anything to do with that at all, but I also don't think that any of this is worth anything more than looking at it in awe during its performance.