Genres are weird, right? They’re not quite extinct thanks to things like streaming, algorithms, playlists, etc., but sometimes it seems like the concept’s expiration date is getting pretty close. Perhaps not a fossil, but an artifact. We understand they do serve a function – we’re just not sure how much longer they’ll continue to do so.
For instance, there’s a lovely, little explored offshoot called post-math. While the name itself sort of calls into question the existence of genre tags in the first place, it’s a tag that’s starting to gather steam and form legitimate identity. Wave Mosaic and their debut record Living Artifacts are proof.
Formerly known as Ghost Forest, Wave Mosaic have dropped one a hell of a debut – Living Artifact‘s confident, snappy appearance is distinctly math rock, but the functions and vibes on display are undoubtedly post-rock as well. Imagine if it had the bones of Don Caballero but the body and blood of something more like sleepmakeswaves or Oceansize.
Submerge yourself below:
“Falling (Loud Noises)” starts with an off-time build that feels reserved at first until it breaks open with oceanic levels post-rock. There’s something inescapable about it, but we like it. It’s like a weighted blanket, which continues in single “react//refract,” a piece we helped premiere a couple of months back that still makes us sweat like we’re trawling through a tropical rainforest.
Living Artifacts has a sense of space that’s emphasized in production as well, not just in the scope of the songwriting, and it’s the way these visions come together that seems to create Wave Mosaic’s recipe for post-math secret sauce. Sometimes the studio is where vision is lost, lessened, or compromised on, but here it sounds like the personnel (Jason Sissoyev on mixing, Cory Gehrich at Sisterly Silence Studios for mastering) saw the exact same outcome for these songs and pushed them exactly where they needed to go.
Speaking of pushing, pacing is another key factor on this record – nothing here feels rushed, everything feels felt and lived-in. Despite a sense of grandiosity, it doesn’t feel like the band is going out of its way to paint something larger-than-life, and it’s a lack of pretense that’s beyond refreshing, taking us back to melodic millennial stalwarts like Mogwai and El Ten Eleven. If you’re looking for something epic and intense yet understated and honest, the oceans of Wave Mosaic and their debut have got you more than covered.
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