THE WHITE EP

"The While" EP earns two stars in my opinion. It fits the definition given by everyone's favorite website. Only someone who is a major supporter of Agalloch would truly appreciate this recording. I'm only mildly impressed.

The administrators of Prog Archives have listed Agalloch as an experimental/post metal band. Categorizing music into genres can be unnecessarily limiting, but it can also be very helpful when you're exploring music that is unfamiliar. This EP and "Of Stone" are the only Agalloch music that I have. So far, I hear very little metal. I think a bigger metal influence would give this music the variety it lacks.

The music on "The White" and "Of Stone" sounds more like progressive folk to me. That is not a bad thing at all. I'm a huge fan of Alison Krauss, an artist who has nothing to do with this site. I've also recently discovered and enjoyed Mostly Autumn. My problem with this EP is that it's monotonous. There's not enough musical development to keep me interested. More vocals would help. However, "Birch White" is the only track with any sung lyrics in it. As such, it is my favorite track here.

The songs sound well played, but they also don't sound like they would be very challenging. There's not enough melodic material here to sustain 30 minutes of music. Perhaps I'm not listening to the right Agalloch. Their other releases are supposed to sound more metal, more varied than this one. I'm apparently in the minority of reviewers when it comes to Agalloch. Out of deference to the other listeners on this site, I will give "The White" two stars.