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The problem with being labelled post-metal over a decade on from the likes of Isis and Cult Of Luna is that you face an enormous challenge to keep pushing the sonic envelope. Sometimes it’s not possible.
It’d be a lie to say that Echoes are the sound of the genre’s re-invention but they do at least borrow from a few off-piste elements on this highly engrossing album. There’s the occasional metalcore-ish gang vocal that won’t shock but might make you raise an impressed eyebrow.
Of course, despite a well-meaning attempt at finding their own voice, all the usual staples are here. Slow-burning, shimmering walls of guitar noise come crashing down as quickly as they were built methodically and drums sound as if they are vibrating at the Earth’s core.
It’s been done before, in superior guises, but it fails to dampen Echoes’ emotional impact and, if they carry on refusing to stick rigidly to an established formula, there could be something quite wonderful coming in the future.
