THE DEATH OF THE DAY

Battlestations is one of the best post-rock bands I've discovered in the last two years, their two studio albums are wonderful, well crafted, with long songs that caught my attention in every single minute and made me feel a lot of things, that's why I have recommended them to my friends, and that's also why I was happy when I saw they released a new EP. This is a 30-minute EP entitled "The Death of the Day", which contains 3 songs, being the first one the longest, and the one that shows the path of Battlestation's style. Curious to see a band from Belgium making this kind of music, but believe me, they are terrific.

The first one is the longest, covering half the EP's length, its name is "Dawn Of A Forgotten | The Adverse Reaction | There's Only So Much You Can Hear In A Sigh | While We're Still Here | Fractured", a track that I am sure you will easily remember due to its exquisite sound; here the band shows they are no longer beginners, they are musicians that can reach the highest post-rock standards, a band that is not praised as one of the best of the genre, but I dare say they are one of the top nowadays, you can tell it by their compositions, their well- crafted passages, the arrangements they implement in each part, and of course, the emotion needed they bring.

What I love the most (and ironically hate), is that the song finishes sooo quickly in spite its length, meaning I truly enjoy it and want to have more of it. The atmosphere might be somber, but it shows peace and calm, I like how it is divided in passages and how each of them has something to tell, I love the guitar game (both, acoustic and electric) and the soft electronic effects they implement. This song is like a short story divided in 5 fragments, my recommendation is to close your eyes and let the music do the rest, you will be transported to another place, I assure you.

"Scar|Breakdown" is the following track. It starts even more somber than the first one, the ambient might be a bit obscure in the first seconds, but later with the addition of guitars seems there is hope, the light is coming out little by little until the dark days are far behind. The drumming are always on good time, in the right place and right moment, the keyboards nuances let us feel things, feel like we are flying, relaxing our souls and thinking in the future. Every person has a different lecture of the music, it provokes endless things, but with me it really successes due to how well crafted the compositions are, and how the passages and its emotions appear just when they have to.

Finally, "Vise|Release" which is, as you can imagine, the shorter track. In spite of its short six minutes, it is a well composed track in which at first I felt like a robot in space, the tension and nervousness are present here, so hold tight and be prepared for the next. After two minutes new sounds are added, but the tension finishes, now the calm appears. You can now smile, feel free, you can let your spirit fly, you will have a smile on your face and a sense of satisfaction in the final three minutes of this song. This is a great way to finish this wonderful EP.

Since I listened to their two full-length albums I knew I would feel something for this band, now I can say they have touched me a lot, and I consider them to be monsters of the current post-rock scene, they have everything I could ask. This EP is wonderful, almost perfect, though I still prefer their "In A Cold Embrace", I can highly recommend this one, which is free to download, by the way. My final grade will be 4.5 stars, but it will stay at 4.

Enjoy it!