Review by Saxy S for Infant Island - Obsidian Wreath (2024)

Infant Island are a band that have been tracking well within the screamo world for a number of years now, but in early 2024, the band released their third studio album, Obsidian Wreath and I get to experience this band first hand and what they might have to offer.

And I do appreciate the effort that Infant island are presenting here on this album. This album is certainly post-metal in its instrumental palette as song structures and compositions are very minimalistic in nature. The record does not contain that much development through the individual tracks in regards to motivic development, but that doesn't really need to happen, since the melodic leads are so compact that they start to become infectious. This is especially so for the albums heavier songs, like "Unrelenting" and "Clawing, Still".

Obsidian Wreath had the potential to be a gorgeous album, but was thwarted by an early 2000s Converge production quality. This record sounds ridiculously muddy during its louder portions, with the kick drum actively disorienting the mix, and given the amount of double kick pedal that's on display here, it turns into a big problem. Some of the softer, post-rock sections during the records second half sound pretty and give the listener a nice reprieve before the next blackgaze assault commences. Overall, I think that I could forgive some of the production choices since it does have some of that grindcore and black metal influence interspersed sheepishly throughout the project. 

What I cannot forgive are these vocals. For a record that is supposedly very dense and filled with heavy socio-political commentary on "[the] climate catastrophe, the acceleration of capitalist extractive exploitation, the apathy towards social health which has emerged from recent mass death, and an endless stream of other ongoing crises too numerable to be named," (quoted from the albums Bandcamp page), Obsidian Wreath seems quite contempt with hiding these words in the very back of the mix. By comparison, Spanish Love Songs manage to invoke the same themes and influences over a pop-punk/heartland rock sound during their last two albums, and those vocals were not only more direct, but also right at the forefront; you could not escape them even if you wanted to. Perhaps a more fitting example for Metal Academy, Ashenspire's 2022 record Hostile Architecture was far more moving with its up front and center vocal performance. Once I accepted this, I found Obsidian Wreath to be more enjoyable when the vocals served as a instrumental embellishment, rather than them saying anything of value.

But that defeats the purpose of Infant Island writing these lyrics in the first place. Unreqvited present the exact same type of post-metal/blackgaze as Infant Island does, but with better production, and vocals that act as an instrument. And on that presumption alone, it's clear to see why I don't like this record as much as I want to. The melodic ideas are fine and I can forgive the bad production, but hiding vocals like this kneecaps this records emotional weight and leaves it feeling like either missed potential, or cocky, pretentious prog kids who want to deconstruct what makes a good song, and leaving an empty shell behind.

Best Songs: Clawing, Still, Amaranthine, Unrelenting