Today we’re rocking something a little different, and we’re really excited about it. Our friends in Ealdor Bealu finally released Psychic Forms today, and we wanted to share this swirling, psychedelic cut of glory with you. No, it’s not exactly math rock, but it is some of the more detailed and exciting heavy music that you’ll hear this year.
As a whole, the album oozes with a sense of style that’s somehow as accessible as it is deep and mysterious. You can pick up influences like High on Fire and early Mastodon, but we also have this deeply forested, almost Celtic layer settling in like a fine mist over everything – and it’s beautifully done. At no point does it sound forced or contrived. The haunting, disembodied interplay between the vocalists goes a long way when it comes to this, and so does the masterful mix they’ve achieved here between the acoustic guitars and the heaps of bubbling, fizzy distortion.
It’s been a long time since we heard a wah pedal make us go, “oh, fuck yeah,” but that happens pretty quickly on “Be Ye Gone,” which you can watch the video for above. It’s one of our favorite songs on the album, and like many of the tracks here, splits the epic runtimes with mystical explorations and heavy metal shred. “Fade into Nothing” transports one to a certain fabled riff filled land, but still channels the band’s unique strain of melodic sludge.
Another boon to this record in particular in the band’s already fantastic discography is the way the vocals have inched forward in the mix. At this point, the perceived distance we hear in the vocals is kind of a signature move for Ealdor Bealu. But three quarters of the band contribute vocals, and each of them come across as classically trained, so it’s nice to hear them in higher fidelity this time. Some of the lines found in “Mirror Reflecting Mirror” and “Laid on Display” seem to vocal inspiration from darkened grunge greats like Soundgarden and Alice in Chains, but never in a derivative way.
Psychic Forms is a victory for the band on nearly every front. It’s no secret that it can be quite an arduous task to translate the magic of a band’s live show into a record, but here, they really nail it. Nothing is buried, nothing is too compressed or hard limited – for a modern metal record, it’s extremely easy on the ears. It’s not too often an album inspires you to play it through different speakers, headphones, etc. but this one certainly did, and it’s a lush, pleasurably pine-scented journey every time.
Seriously, go check it out. If you’re looking for something moody, heavy, and intriguing, we couldn’t recommend Psychic Forms enough. It’s the first record we’ve heard in a while that made us want to sit down and relax, and you know what? We needed that. Thanks Ealdor Bealu. Check out the rest of their discography here. Coming up we’ve got Dead Bird, POUND, Honeybender, and a hell of a lot more. If you want to keep us caffeinated, which we always appreciate, please feel free to send us a coffee here. Regardless, we love you, and thank you for your time. Catch you next time!