I’ve spoken a lot about the different flavors of post rock. The genre has much of hope, wonder, and color but it’s hard to deny that its base, post rock is melancholic. Even the more “positive” emotions (if such a neuro-typical spectrum is even worth repeating) displayed within the genre are tinged with longing and a forlorn sense of distance. Thus, every so often, it’s refreshing to hear a post rock band simply tap into that difficult and burdensome place of sadness and bring forth a type of post rock awash in the early influences of the genre. Which is exactly what onj. are all about. Head down below to hear “Alone”. Bring tissues.
Following an ambient intro, the first milestone is the single drum hit which ushers in the track proper, at one minute and forty five seconds. I love how the band chose to draw out the moments after the first several hits, leaving it standing as a monument within the silence for just a fraction of a second. From there, the track repeats the themes of the intro and slowly builds up to the eventual crescendo which, luckily, is handled with restraint that most bands in the genre lack. It’s not so much an alien peak, as is often the case with these kinds of tracks, but rather a natural flowering of the musical ideas contained in the buildup.
This flowering comes in the form of heavier guitars over the still-delayed theme from the intro in the background. These weave in and out to more fully explore the sounds and contours of the track. The end result of the whole thing taken together is of yndi halda‘s most somber moments taken a few steps even deeper. This track, whose name is also the album’s name, tells you much of what you can expect from Alone, which releases on May 12th. Pre-order it here for all the bleak contemplation your heart desires. You know it desires it.