DOWSING ANEMONE WITH COPPER TONGUE

Words cannot describe the feeling that Kayo Dot convey with their sophomore effort. This album is dark, moody, and undeniably heavy and yet features (only a few) moments of dare I say it, uplifting music. The mostly instrumental album is the culmination of 3 years of work from the group, and it comes off remarkably well. Toby Driver guides the group through the multi-faceted compositions, which feature dreary and dark riffs, and some quirky horn/violin sections in between. One word comes to my mind when I think of this album, brilliant.

Gemini Becoming the Tripod is the opener, starting off quietly but quickly picking up pace. Driver and Massi shine vocally here, and the riffs and sounds created are nothing short of breathtaking, especially the horns used on the song. Immortelle and Paper Caravelle is next, and it has a more mellow feeling than the rest of the album. It has a very ethereal and atmospheric feeling to it, with the violin standing out in my mind as some of the greatest fusion of metal and violin I've ever heard. Aura On An Asylum Wall is third, and it has the most conventional feeling of the entire album. This song also shows some experimentation with jazz, with the horns and violin giving a great groove to the backbone of the song. ___On Limpid Form is the most noteworthy track on the album as well as the longest track on the album. The breakdown that takes place from the 8th minute to the 18th minute, which is just an onslaught of well timed chords and dissonant modes, is utterly breathtaking and in my mind the best moment on the entire album. Amarenth the Peddler concludes the album, and it takes the Post-Rock label this band has been given and takes it into new, more exciting realms, the violin on this track is utterly brilliant and I constantly refer back to this section (towards the end of the song) whenever I listen to it.

Overall, fans of metal and post-rock will find something to enjoy on this album. Although the album has so many strengths, there are a few minor gripes. One, the quiet sections are as I said, quiet, too quiet. And Aura On An Asylum Wall tends to drag on a bit in the middle. But despite these faults, there is a lot going for this album, and I highly recommend it. 4.5/5.