I always find it undeniably satisfying when an artist’s music is intrinsically synonymous with their chosen moniker. It’s not indicative of musical superiority, per se; it just brings me heightened joy when indulging in their craft or when seeking words to describe their sound to a potential new listener. Well, today Everything Is Noise are delighted to present a shining example of this for your listening pleasure – the latest, towering slice of post-metal from US quintet Glacier.
Hailing from Boston, Massachusetts, Glacier are confident purveyors of the lumbering, heavyweight instrumental soundscapes associated with the post-rock and post-metal realms. Furthermore, their sound encapsulates their name perfectly: Glacier’s music shifts in sizeable yet sometimes almost imperceptible ways – appearing to be both barely moving and yet unstoppable in its force, leaving audible destruction in their wake. It’s a sound that catches you unprepared, and garnered the band high praise for 2019’s No Light Ever (alongside a nomination for ‘Best Metal Artist’ at the 2019 Boston Music Awards). Since then, Glacier have honed their sound further, increasing the crushing effectiveness of their textures and dynamics. The result is “The old timers said they’d never seen nothin’ like that”, the lead single from upcoming record A Distant, Violent Shudder.
Conceptually, the band’s latest record ‘loosely centers around the Dust Bowl of the 1930s and how the times and events paralleled the times we are living in now.’ As you can hear (and see from the brooding artwork), its power is readily apparent: unassuming at first, but as Glacier gather pace, the song reveals its true nature, a composition characteristic of the chaos unleashed on an unsuspecting populace. It is both expansive and enveloping: reaching ever outwards over the course of its nine-plus minutes with a trudging brutality, while at the same time invoking a sense of inescapable fear. This is not a fleeting attack of audible ferocity, no; Glacier persist in their sonic onslaught, and you eventually succumb to a sense of building pressure and magnitude under a dense trifecta of distorted guitar, cacophonic drums, and meaty bass work that conjures imagery of a path of untold devastation. It’s a song that warns you of the impending danger early on – something ignored at your peril – before gradually evolving and intensifying, wading through thick riffs and thumping toms in its latter portion towards a sombre and pained lead motif that caves under dissonance in the dying minutes. Don’t just settle for my take on it, though:
‘”The old timers said they’d never seen nothin’ like that” was coincidentally the first song we wrote for the new record and we believe it invokes the feelings of isolation, loneliness, and the anxieties that come with a harsh and unrelenting force beyond our control. The world is an unforgiving place and we tried to capture that feeling the best we could.’
I’d wager the titular old timers would certainly be caught by surprise as this behemoth of a track rolled into town. Maybe it’s the insurmountable sense of scale that builds throughout this thudding track, or the softened opening portion and unsettled flourishes that perhaps indicate a misplaced sense of safety and calm before the storm. Either way, Glacier have made an audible statement of intent that marks A Distant, Violent Shudder as an album to keep watch for. That being said, I cannot imagine the heavy shuddering, nor sonic violence remaining particularly distant for very long once it reaches ears later this year.
A Distant, Violent Shudder is due for joint release this September by Wolves & Vibrancy Records and Post. Recordings. To ensure you are braced for impact, you can pre-order the album here for Europe, and here for all of North America. Glacier also have socials worth a follow in the usual places: Facebook, Instagram, as well as their official website.
Photo Credit: Ben Stas
