BATTLESTATIONS

Two of the tracks are almost 19 minutes long. The first is "Segment 1: No Survivors" which has 10 different sections. This begins mellow with guitar, cymbals and a bit of synth before the sampled talking enters the scene. When the bass guitar appears everything is more dark and ominous sounding. Eventually some lush New Age-y synths appear, leading to an uplifting melody that almost has a New Wave vibe to it. Drumming during this section but I think they use electronic drums and/or programmed drumming. Almost a duet (triet?) between piano, bass and acoustic guitar at one point.

"Segment 2: The Taste Of The Kill" is divided into only 2 sections, being the shortest track. It opens with some call-and-response between two echoed guitars. As a drum thud repeats the music builds up with violins and guitar chords. You hear a speed altered crowd chanting "stop police violence" before the music turns dark ambient. "Segment 3: Accidents Of Ideals" has 5 sections to it. It slowly builds up to a section with some barely audible female vocals singing what I assume are wordless sounds. This track seems to drag on in places compared to the previous two. Compared to this, In A Cold Embrace seems more consistent although it takes more listens to sink in. Overall a well recorded and good sounding album, contains different moods and instrumentation but the music sometimes is not sure where it wants to go. Good but not essential. 3 stars.

Prologue : Nature morte - You're not welcome here - opens the CD and is appealing from the very beginning. The opening ambiance sets an ominous tone of helplessness and despair. The introduction yields to a marching beat taking us ever closer to the mood of suspense. That suspense flows into a rock solid climax with a jazz element and stable hook that I really like. Comrade - The way we grieve ? continues the theme of the first track giving the listener a sense of hope that builds and continues into the next track.

Interlude : Time stands still ? has an epic opening with a reverse symphonic orchestra. It pulls the listening into a time lapse reminiscent of the tracks name.

Breaking bad news - The faces we remember- this song seems to have little direction or structure, but at the same time has some beautiful movements.

The semblance of fate -Epilogue : Citizen creep - The end - This might be my favorite track as it has that strong Tangerine Dream sound; painting distant landscapes, futuristic scenes and alternate realities, but concludes with a sense of solid in-this-world grounding..

The music is talented and unique, and ties together the sounds of the 70s space rock with the contemporary progressive metal of 2012 with a nice layer of post rock. At times the ambiance drags on a little too long without substantive structure or changes for my taste. However, overall, it is a fine release for a second album from a relatively unknown band. I have not seen any live material from the band. It would be interesting to see if that can reproduce the material in a live setting. In any case, give this a 3.5, and round up to a four. 4 Stars

I love a band that can transmit strong feelings, so the claustrophobic and full of desperation opener Prologue : Nature Morte // You're not Welcome Were,captured me from the first second. Somebody described the song as "a long introduction for a song that never happens ", I agree with him, but that's precisely the reason why I enjoyed it so much, being that suspense uis the key element of a good album, it's easy to make a dark intro and explode in a burst of sounds to make everybody happy, but this guys have enough talent to prepare the listener for something that never occurs, but still keep the interest of the audience, being that the performances (specially the acoustic guitar) are incredibly beautiful. A great start for a great album.

If the first track was very soft and oriented towards Ambient, Comrade // The Way We Grieve is much more aggressive, with a strong and constant percussion and bass and a subtle guitar work plus mysterious choirs is delightful. The constant dissonance enriches the musical experience. As the track advances it goes in crescendo somehow reminiscent of Tubular Bells but never explodes, it's like a controlled and addictive chaos, simply brilliant.

Interlude : Time Stands Still is a really weird track, with a haunting organ and the engineer playing with the volume, I was at the edge of the seat all along the track with a creepy feeling of being trapped in the middle of nowhere.

Breaking Bad News // The Faces We Remember is like a very long introduction where the band experiments with cadences, and explores the possibilities that the different instruments provide them, the Mellotron choirs are extremely haunting and frightening, spectacular, specially when blending some soft jazzy elements.

The guys of BATTLESATION kept the best for the grand finale, The Semblance of Fate // Epilogue : Citizen Creep // The End is amazing and has everything a Prog fans loves, from melodic piano sections to obscure creepy passages and a couple experimental moments with strange sounds a short heavy rocking instant and a lot of drama?Pay special attention to the drumming and the acoustic guitar, both are out of this world.

Until today I haven't reviewed a single Post Rock/Math Rock album, simply because I don't care for the style, but In a Cold Embrace has impressed me, to the point that I'll rate my first album of this sub-genre with four solid stars that should be 4.5 if the system allowed it.

Almost forgot to mention the booklet, which is extremely beautiful and melancholic, the sepia pictures hava some kind of magic that compares with nothing.

To make comparisons, the music here sounds like a vocal-less Sigur Ros (but less optimistic sounding) mixed with GYBE (but less bleak and dark sounding). Sometimes it sounds like film soundtrack music, specifically a sci-fi or horror flick. Unlike the first album there is few vocal samples here (which the first one had lots of). Both albums were recorded at night (they most likely have day jobs) over a span of years. In A Cold Embrace opens with "Prologue: Nature morte / / You're not welcome here" where a looped something (keyboard?) lays the groundwork for instruments to join on top, mostly acoustic guitar and an electronic drum pattern. The loop goes away and everything turns more dreamy sounding. Some cinematic synth sequences replace the electronic drum pattern. Acoustic guitar dominates for awhile. Distorted guitar strums away in the background before what I assume is 'real' drums enter the picture.

"Comrade // The way we grieve" begins with soundscapes by a guitar I'm guessing before a very GYBE-like guitar figure appears and leads the other instruments into a GYBE style crescendo. Unlike GYBE, I don't think these guys use any strings or brass instruments. It sounds like electronic drums are used but it may just be the way the drumkit was mixed. Everything dies down and then we get some acoustic guitar over ambient soundscapes. A little bit of keyboards and some subdued, almost Fripp-like guitar playing join in. "Interlude: Time stands still" being the interlude is of course the shortest track. Some cinematic sounding synths, some of them looped, along with some fuzzed guitar playing almost random notes.

I like the beginning of "Breaking bad news // The faces we remember"-very post-rock sounding. Echoey and reverby guitars and keyboards(?) play single notes which form a long, stretched out melody. The background cinematic soundscapes become louder and more dominant as the acoustic guitars get looser and more improvised before returning to the single notes. All of a sudden everything gets more brighter as the music turns into some kind of electronic ambient. Sounds like altered choir sounds but that could just be a keyboard. Full band comes in and does an ambient groove. Just more single notes till the end.

"The semblance of fate // Epilogue: Citizen Creep // The end" opens with soundscapes and some slightly altered piano. The bass has a nice deep tone here. This part reminds me of something else but I can't quite put my finger on it. Just soundscapes and altered talking (to the point where you can't understand what's being said) for awhile. Very gently goes into some kind of Krautrock/post-punk/alternative vibe. I'm almost convinced they only use electronic percussion at this point. The music gets more post-y sounding. Some cinematic soundscapes and guitars before it goes cinematic dark ambient with more altered talking. A drone leads to echoed guitar chords and more soundscapes before ending the album.

I actually don't like the way the album ends too much; the first few times I listened to the album I thought: "why the silence? oh, it's over." Instead of just abruptly ending(another thing I don't like), everything just sort of fizzles out. Otherwise this is a very good effort. It has a great sound to it and the playing is good for what the music requires. Recommended to those who enjoy the more easy-going yet cinematic and atmospheric end of post-rock. My final verdict will be a 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars.

First, it's not music to be easily categorized. I'm very satisfied with the choice of Post Rock though. This instrumental and abstract-natured music has some similarities with SIGUR ROS for example, without sounding the same at all. Battlestation has found a voice of their own. Other connotations I got are linked to the term Dream Pop, COCTEAU TWINS and the PA addition DEAD CAN DANCE, with one notable difference: as Sigur Ros, also these bands have vocals (Elisabeth Frazer and Lisa Gerrard, respectively) as an important part of the overall sound even if recognizable lyrics and song-form are less used. The total absence of vocals helps Battlestations to avoid many comparisons.

Also I felt this music to be very cinematic, in a way that your own imagination can paint scenes. And I believe the musicians have attempted to receive this effect, leaving all the explaining, informative words out of the package (except that the music's recorded at night-time). Even the title tracks leave a lot of space and openness. 'You're Not Welcome Here', The Way We Grieve', The Faces We Remember', 'The Semblance of Fate', etc. If this was a film, it would be very artistic and atmospheric with minimal dialogue, emphasizing on (sad) emotions. Maybe some conflict on the background that costs lives. But the major difference with film music is that here we have long tracks whereas film music usually has short segments.

Another term that must be mentioned is Dark Ambient. The mood is somber but not disturbing or aggressive. There's surely beauty in this music. The sound is very organic, the separate instruments are usually not getting a visible role. Often this kind of instrumental ambient music is done by a sole musician (such as Robert Rich, Roger Eno, Harold Budd or Vangelis) and it would be interesting to know the exact line-up here. If this music is done in a collective way as a band, they have a wonderful spiritual unity! Easily worth 4 stars, almost five from me too.

"Prologue : Nature morte // You're not welcome here" In a Cold Embrace begins with a disquieting rumble , like some nefarious creature of the deep waiting to emerge. Yet this beast is not so wicked, as the music settles into a smooth, chilled passage of sound. Leaving the terrain of traditional post-rock, the prologue moves through psychedelic textures. Much of it is like the quiet middle section of Yes' "Awaken."

"Comrade // The way we grieve" It's easy to get lost in the soft, graceful, yet icy scenery this second piece paints.

"Interlude : Time stands still" This is indeed an interlude, a terse piece of cinematic, synthetic tones.

"Breaking bad news // The faces we remember" In keeping with the overall mood of the album, a somber and meditative passage provides soft, clean guitars and low keyboard backing.

"The semblance of fate // Epilogue : Citizen creep // The end" Distant piano and electric guitar swirl around dominant bass notes. Like a lighted hearth on a winter evening, there is a warming sensation that emanates from the middle of this piece. In the end, it reverts back to the glacial and secluded bitterness, finishing with a tranquil piano that sounds like the graceful acceptance of dying.

The members of Battlestations are still unknown. With this move the band shifts the focus from the individuals and their potential fame to their music. The Belgians without a face reflect their mystic-selves through their music, but they reflect through it much more than only that ? their music is still something that cannot be identified, that can be known as such, something that is so fresh and new that you can't really put a finger on it.

In a Cold Embrace is divided into five parts - »Prologue : Nature morte // You're not welcome here«, »Comrade // The way we grieve, Interlude : Time stands still«, »Breaking bad news // The faces we remember«, »The semblance of fate // Epilogue : Citizen creep // The end« - but, like its debut predecessor, works fluent as a whole, like one composition. It would be therefore pointless to indulge into describing each of the five tracks as a separate part of the album.

The album itself is, despite its diversity, fluent through and through. It's not only connected in some kind of a musical story, the thing that connects it goes deeper than that. I would be difficult to simply say that the whole album is made in a similar fashion, because it's too dynamic, too diverse to say something like that. The fabric that connects the music on the album is rooted so deep that it transcends your usual conceptual albums. The somewhat chaotic minimalism is always around, and this is tied in a larger concept of psychedelic and post-rock sound, influenced by such different genres as classical music and electronic music. Battlestations' music simply takes its material from so many musical genres that seem to be completely unrelated and unmergeable, which makes the job harder for the music critic. Therefore I can only rely myself on my feelings when I listen to the music and trust the word associations that pop-up upon hearing the band's work.

It is obvious for In a Cold Embrace to be an album that really plays on the listener's emotions. The whole musical construct has such a huge influence because of this suppressed dynamics and really unusual and diverse compositions that leave the listener at least uncomfortable upon hearing a certain part. There are many unexpected musical turn-outs that really attract the listener's attention. But the most intriguing are these little pieces of the musical fabric that stand out. These little details are practically infinite, but they are connected in such a way that they result in an ambient music par excellence. Because ambiance is what Battlestations are all about. They take the seemingly ugliest and noisiest and combine them into a whispering beauty of a post-rock minimalism.

In a Cold Embrace is another Battlestations album that is going to sweep you off your feet. Their ability to compose the uncomposeable, to put passivity into a rhythm and to make a noise sound like a whisper is beyond this world. But the most surprising thing is that there are no obvious band influences, nothing to reference. Battlestations stand alone in their music. They are the future of this era of innovation, of possibilities, of musical discoveries. They are everything that is right in today's music scene.

Return / Mr. Abject EP is connected to the band's debut primarily through their by-now typical intertwining electric and acoustic guitars. Their electronic manipulation is still there, but it's been really reduced. Those guidelines pushed their music into a more familiar area ? their sound comes close to the more experimental post-punk groups of the 80's era and the more advantageous post-rock groups of the 90's. The music itself is still somehow hidden in the veil of mystery, like the band itself, but is, at the same time, much more out in the open as the music on the debut. The listener's ears can manage the sounds more clearly and the music is much more coherent altogether.

The band's second studio effort therefore represents some kind of a bridge to their potential musical expression. A bridge from adolescence to adulthood. But even though their music is much more recognizable and melodic (and therefore easier to remember), it lost some of that primordial chaos, that primal experimentation that was really what made their debut such an impressionable experience. Nonetheless, Return / Mr. Abject EP is a great release and should be listened by those who already know of the band and by those who are only getting acquainted with them.

Very cinematic, a bit trip-hoppy à la MASSIVE ATTACK, with a little COCTEAU TWINS shoegaziness thrown in, and then, of course, follow Post Rock/Math Rock formats, and you have the formula for the majority of In a Cold Embrace. I think what I like most about this music is that if I were still creating music, this is exactly the kind of music I would want to be creating.

1. "Prologue: Nature Morte/You're Not Welcome Here" (10/10) is my favorite song on the album. This song sounds as if it could have been taken straight off of an old LOBOTOMY BROTHERS CD, probably their first one, Live! But Just Barely or their second, the out-takes EP, Partial Lobotomy. "Prologue" begins like a wonderful Spaghetti-Western soundtrack. At the 4:25 mark the song shifts with the introduction of a repeating sequence of two 'orchestra hit' chords from the synthesizer around which the other instruments (rolling Cocteau Twins- like bass, treated acoustic and electric guitars, programmed drums, and percussives) dance. At 7:15 things change again. A baribou-sounding instrument sets the pace of the new equally slow rhythm and is accompanied by fast-oscillating flanged guitar strums, voice samples, slow-picked guitar melody, and, later, drums (they sound live but could also be programmed) and background synth sounds. This is cinematic, meditative, background music heaven.

2. "Comrade/The Way We Grieve" (10/10) could be another very effective cinematic theme song. Military march drumming lays the groundwork over which guitars and synths are added, layered, throbbing, buzzing, and zinging their melodies. At 5:10 every thing slows down, fades away to allow the establishment of a new lineup of instruments playing in a new key, watched by a whale-sounding guitar, before a melody-supporting chord sequence is formed, over which a delayed guitar plays a very beautiful, very emotional melody. Synths and additional guitars join in after the eight minute mark to fade. Stunningly gorgeous.

3. "Interlude: Time Stands Still" (9/10), at two-and-a-half minutes in length is the album's shortest piece, but it is a beautiful one, with heavily effected guitar crooning out another slow but emotional melody. Once again, it sounds like it came right off the 1988 Partial Lobotomy CD.

4. "Breaking Bad News/The Faces We Remember" (9/10) is a very spacey, airy song sounding almost like an ambient Fripp/Eno or Eno/Budd experiment with the interplay of various effects and delays--until the 3:40 mark when a synth wash chord progression and electronic drum track enter and establish some drama. At 5:15 a full drum and bass rhythm section join in sounding very much like a COCTEAU TWINS instrumental. Awesome. Ends with the same sparse ambient themes and instruments of the beginning.

5. "The Semblance of Fate/Citizen Creep/The End" (8/10) begins with some piano (treated à la HAROLD BUDD et al.) in yet another cinematic theme. At 2:30 piano stops leaving some atmospheric synths to float around in the background while what sounds like the treated (reversed?) voice of a female London Underground PA speaker voice makes some (to me) unintelligible announcements. Once she stops, a new theme with new instruments is developed, coming to full force with a fast-paced drum program (I think) livening things up quite a bit. At the seven minute mark, the music stops leaving a repeating piano arpeggio to bridge into the next section which does, in fact, sound like the band--or film--is trying to say good-bye (except this is the second section, "Citizen Creep"). Beautiful, like a French romance. The final two and a half minutes are very much like each instrument is going to sleep--or trying to put you to sleep.

Each of the past five years has revealed a stunningly beautiful album from the Post Rock/Math Rock sub-genre which gives me faith that the sub-genre has not been 'played out' that, in fact, fresh ideas and creative variations are being made to keep the Post Rock/Math Rock sub-genre alive and moving forward. In 2008 Hamburg's DATURAH gave us Reverie, in 2009 came APPLESEED CAST's Sagarmantha, in 2010 we had not one but three brilliant Post Rock/Math Rock releases: COLLAPSE UNDER THE EMPIRE's The Sirens Sound, MY EDUCATION's soundtrack tribute to F.W. Murnau's 1927 silent movie, Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, and GIFTS FROM ENOLA's Gifts from Enola, and last year, 2011, we had Australia's SLEEPMAKESWAVES' ...and so we destroyed everything. I am so thankful for these beautiful albums--and for the Post Rock/Math Rock sub-genre.

Enigmas, mysteries, myth-making... the whole image can be based on a very specific style of music. A style that itself creates the same illusion as with its appearance, but rather with sound. I am not talking about a band that is leaning on the various myths as is the Cthulhu one, although their dark music could as well be paralleled with Lovecraft's horror writing. This band is a quite young one (although that is no really known), and the members come from Belgium. The number of musicians in the band ' unknown. Their identity ' unknown. Their ability to create the most incredible music ' unbelievable.

Battlestations, the band in question, took the progressive, post-rock and similarly-oriented scene faster than Julius Caesar can say 'Veni, Vidi, Vici'. Their self-titled album came so unexpected that it took everyone by surprise. Band started to modestly advertise their music more or less through various forums, inviting everyone to listen to their music. For free, of course. And after that, everyone that tried to find out more about this mysterious band ' and the ones that tried to do that were quite a few ' found ' zero. Nada. The only thing that was known about them was the only thing that the band itself wanted to be known about them ' their music. And maybe that is why their music is special. So special that people stopped wondering about their identity and accepted music as their sole one.

The self-titled album is made-up of three segments. Each segment has its own theme, its own story, which is kind of reminiscent of the classical music. But Battlestations can hardly be called classical. Truth be told, they can't be really placed in a genre.

Segment 1, the longest track on the album, is called 'No Survivors'. It is divided into 10 passages, each with its own story, each with its own victim. Thoroughly melancholic music, which is not particular only to this segment, but to the whole album, is complemented with numerous samples of speeches. These are blurred, almost inaudible, full of white noise. But the formula for the band's tracks is not even near completion. The music ' Segment 1 as well as the other two ' is full of obscure experimenting. There are numerous attempts at making something fresh with everything today's modern electronics have to offer - countless electronic manipulations, doubling of electric and acoustic guitars through discord, ethereal vocals pasted onto a instrumental without a rhythm. Tangerinedreamish approach to creating various sound barriers never felt so fresh. Maybe because this time, they are mixed with so many other genres that simply weren't there in the 70's. Shoegaze, piano music, progressive rock and post-rock are all transcendentally mixed into this magical genreless cocktail, which succeeds in creating an illusion of a full-blown orchestra, even though the music is quite minimalistic. Segment 2 and 3 ' 'The Taste Of The Kill' and 'Accidents Of Ideals' ' continue with the melancholic post-apocalyptic mental ravage, which is abstracted to its musical fullest.

The entry into the postmodern, self-searching musical commune is therefore perfect. Charismatic, mysterious, sudden, but at the same time incredibly modest. Like blitzkrieg without the ammunition. Winning the people over with the purest form of the most abstract substance there is ' music.

Rating: 4.3/5 (4 stars)