GRAVA have revealed another song from their upcoming album “The Great White Nothing”, set for release on September 27th 2024 via Aesthetic Death (CD), Vinyltroll Records (LP) and Evil Noise (MC). “Mangled” is premiering now at Toilet Ov Hell.
The first single, “Decimate”, is also still available HERE.
The Faroese/Danish trio’s debut album, “Weight of a God” (2022), showcased a violent yet atmospheric type of sludge metal that was simultaneously raw in its execution and disciplined in terms of songwriting. Its follow-up continues in the same vein while adding a touch of nuance and depth to the vicious soundscape. Like its predecessor, the album was produced by Troels Damgaard Holm and mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege.
Though not a concept album, the album kicks off with two tracks (“Erebus” and “White Thresher”) that revolve around the same event: the tragic Franklin Expedition, which in 1845 ventured to the northernmost Arctic to explore the Northwest Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The expedition was a disaster; both ships (HMS Erebus and HMS Terror) were lost, and all 128 crew members perished in the great white nothing to which the title and cover refer.
Throughout the album, GRAVA expand their lyrical universe, and the bleak sludge metal is accompanied by tales of a heartbreaking execution of a Swedish nobleman in 1707 (“Breaker”), a tragic train accident in the outskirts of Copenhagen in 1897 (“Mangled”), and a soldier’s final chaotic moments in one of the countless muddy trenches of World War I (“Bayonet”).
Just like on their debut album, GRAVA do not attempt to tell stories from A to Z but instead attempt to capture moments of death as seen through the eyes of the dying. The effect is a musical and lyrical drama that appears fragmented and intense but also surprisingly disciplined in terms of songwriting. In a genre often characterized by long songs, GRAVA never lose grip on their compositions, and although “The Great White Nothing” is full of interesting musical ideas, the tracks rarely extend far beyond the three-minute mark.
Tracklist:
1. Erebus
2. White Thresher
3. Decimate
4. Breaker
5. The Fall
6. Mangled
7. Bayonet
8. Ceasefire
9. Hinterlands
Line-up:Casper Axilgård: Drums
Niels Asger Svensson: Vocals, bass
Atli Brix Kamban: Vocals, guitar
GRAVA Online:
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