Citizend – The Spiral
Citizend – The Spiral EP
Majestic Mountain Records
Release Date: 06/12/2024
Running Time: 20:54
Review by Beth Morait
9/10
“Alt” and “Post-” genres are a lot like a box of chocolates – you never know what you’re gonna get, as Forest Gump once said. It makes pulling up a new release an intriguing experience, which I will never tire of. But, if a band’s from Sweden, you can pretty much always be sure that the chocolate box is going to be full of all the good ones. Today’s subject, Citizend, are a duo from Sweden, and create a blend of Americana, Post-Rock, and Post-Metal. And they do indeed tick all the right boxes for chocolate connoisseurs like me! This new EP is a small glimpse into their unique, bluesy, melancholic style, that I really like, for lots of reasons.
Opening with ‘The Beginning’ (which is a good place to start I guess), Citizend set a haunting scene, using atmospheric ambience, with lilting keys, and bass, to create a calm, but foreboding air. Being a pianist, I love it when the keys take the lead. And I love the way the synth ambience builds and swells. It’s a very cinematic piece – the sort that would be played as the protagonist brows a hill to look down on their village in the valley, after trekking for days, and through unimaginable hardship to make it home, only to find the village destroyed by the enemy. Indeed, this fits with the intention of this EP. The press pack states that “The Spiral” is “a conceptual journey that spans a lifetime before the world meets its end. Teetering on the brink of an uncertain future, its narratives delve deep into an individual’s thoughts and experiences about the impending apocalypse, from the beginning to the end.”
‘Down’ is next. And with this song, we get the first vocal appearance. Bluesy and melancholic, the vocals drive this track through 4 minutes of a Country song doing battle with Doom Metal. It’s great! If every Country track sounded like this, I’d be right on that wagon, complete with a Stetson and spurs!
The latest single release, ‘Grinding Bones’, follows. This has the same, low, hollow, ‘dead behind the eyes’ vocals as the previous track, but this time another vocal line is added, tracking the lead, but an octave higher, which creates a great effect. This is less Country, and more Rock, but some of the cadences, and musical motifs are pulled right from the classical composer’s handbook.
‘Drowning’ is my favourite track of the EP. It’s almost 90’s Grunge, but just that little bit cleverer and more superior. Vocally, the bass tones are in charge, even though they’re taken up a bit. They make me think of a cross between Nick Cave and Layne Staley, when they’re up the top end. And the fuzzed-out guitars that sit behind the lyrics really do take me back to my formative years, sitting in the Tivoli in Buckley, either Gothed up to the nines, or in my Radiohead top (which I still own, and wear, 30 years later).
The EP comes to a close with ‘End of the World’ (again, a pretty solid place to finish I’d say!). This is the track that accepts fate and stops trying to fight against the inevitable in a dystopian nightmare. It’s very Country again, and begins stripped back to just vocals, guitars, and a solitary beating drum, keeping the rhythm of this funeral march measured and steady. The middle section reintroduces more drums, keys, and ambient harmonies, but in an understated way which keeps the overarching sense of sadness running through the song.
This is a lovely little body of work, that, much like a box of chocolates, leaves me wanting a lot more. If you like your music melancholic and lilting, or have any sort of penchant for Country, Grunge, Blues, Post-rock, Americana, Cinematic soundscapes, or existential dread, then I’d invite you to give Citizend a try.
TRACKLISTING:
01. The Beginning
02. Down
03. Grinding Bones
04. Drowning
05. End of the World
LINE-UP:
Emil Gustavsson
Otto Nilsson
LINKS:
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