Words cannot express how happy I am to be alive during this golden age of music. With the massive advancement in all kinds of technology over the past few decades, nearly everything is cheaper and more accessible; the world is within reach of our fingertips. Nowadays, technology and knowledge regarding music recording and production has come so far that that aspect of music creation isn’t really that much of a hurdle anymore. This allows for so many artists to focus mainly on the music rather than get hung up on having the means to record (financially and knowledge-wise) and as a result, we’re in the middle of a new musical renaissance with all the unique music that’s being released on a weekly basis. What a time to be alive, truly.
With all that being said, I want to introduce this special group that needs to be heard. Everything Is Noise couldn’t be any more ecstatic to unleash Carmen Sea into the world with an exclusive premiere of their debut EP, HISS. Carmen Sea is a young group from France that exudes ambition, talent, and unrivaled creativity. I’m sure that if you look at the tags at the bottom of the article, you’ll see scattered genre descriptors and it’ll misguide you to think that this music is just all over the place when in reality it isn’t. Although very diverse in sound, HISS is a very deliberate, honed-in musical journey that brings so many influences together to create one fluid musical entity that goes beyond genre descriptors. I can just tell that this group won’t be unsigned for very long!
Upon my very first listen through Carmen Sea‘s HISS, I knew I had stumbled upon something special. I don’t mean to discredit the band whatsoever, but with all the music out there, I feel as if I am always coming across music that blows me away. Even with that in mind, HISS is just something else, in the best of ways. There is just so much going on at every moment, yet it feels very premeditated and focused. You’ll find out soon enough that everything about this group is top-notch as can be to create both consonance and dissonance.
The rhythm section does a fantastic job keeping the music moving forward and feeling groovy while the guitar and electric violin masterfully play off one another. I’m baffled with the sheer dynamic range of the violinist, Joachim Baumerder, as he is the centripetal force that drives the magic behind HISS. From the most eerie, unsettling scrapes to soft plucks and majestic, sorrowful legatos, you really get a taste of everything that can be done with a violin here, even if this is only a brief EP. It isn’t often that you hear a group of musicians that are so in touch with one another to create music as enthralling as HISS is.
“Frames” sets the mood as the violin takes center stage with exuberance right from the start. The track winds down a bit towards the middle leading into a chill post-rock jam session that shows the violin slowly trickle back into the midst, becoming more melodramatic over time. This piece builds into an unforgettable climax that brings the weeping tendencies of classical music and earth-shattering weight behind post-metal into one beyond moving moment. “Black Echoes” is a math metal jam where the riffs sound as if they take influence from Psychonaut with their groovy, psychedelic nature. The penultimate track, “A Last Call”, is one of several slow burner tracks, starting off in an ambient, trippy manner building up to yet another massive release of tension with jazzy undertones. Lest we not forget the absolute behemoth of a closing track, “Glow In Space”. I am honestly at a loss for words with this one. Given how intense and vibrant the music has been up until now, once you see the beefy track length to this song, you be able to glean how insane this song gets. I won’t spoil that surprise for you anymore, as you need to experience it for yourself.
It is always the artists that come out of hypothetical ‘nowhere’ that are the ones who leave me needing to change into an extra pair of pants. Perhaps it is the fact that I simply don’t know what to expect from the music that leaves me so awestruck when something as special as this comes up, but whatever it is, I need more. Carmen Sea have definitely hit the ground running, hard, with their energetic debut EP. HISS is without a doubt one of my favorite EPs of the year, if not the most memorable one to my ears. The music of Carmen Sea truly knows no boundaries and defies all genres, thus I implore you to give them a listen first here; you won’t regret it. You’ll want to keep up with this group over the coming years as they are bound to do great things, so give them a digital thumbs-up on Facebook to stay in the loop!
