The self-titled debut album from US band Idre is an introduction which permeates every sense, thought, and emotion. The two track forty minute beast of a release is a swamp of weighty dark textures amidst carnivorous structures and intrusive oppression within melodically bred abrasive atmospheres. It also carries an underlying emotive seduction which permeates with an insidious virulence to make the most compelling persuasion. The release makes an intensively provocative entrance by the Oklahoma City trio, one with room to stretch and polish its caustic sound ahead, but is a base reeking potential and impressive imagination which makes Idre a proposition to clamp attention firmly upon.
Consisting of guitarist/vocalist Ryan Davis, bassist Andon Whitehorn, and drummer Nicholas Wojcik, Idre (pronounced eye-druh) merge inspirations from the likes of Black Math Horseman, Neurosis, Earth, Swans, Ennio Morricone, Frederic Chopin, OM, Sink, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Khanate, and Townes Van Zandt into their diversely lit and sculpted presence as evidenced on their album. Its sound is wonderfully hard to pin down, flavours such as doom, post metal, neo-classical, and depressive atonal explorations converging for two suffocating landscapes, but just as pleasingly easy to recommend.
The release opens with the demanding and expansive Factorie, almost twenty seven minutes of dark investigation strapped with evolving and fascinating scenery. A sonic mist opens up a cavernous embrace with intimidatingly striding rhythms and cold stark guitar droning. It is a start and premise to chill the soul yet veining its suasion is a rich almost toxic melodic emotional engineering stroking the imagination with evocative hues. From there the track slips into a sultry ambience and smouldering sonic picture reaping those Morricone seeds as vocally Davis offers Johnny Cash like provocative narrative. As magnetic as it is poetic in its intrigue ridden almost epic stance, the passage mesmerises with its potent lures whilst all the time shadows and threatening shades close further in with intensified intent. Each taking of the track’s body sparks new adventures in the imagination, thoughts exploring personal and the songs reflections within an infectious toxicity. As it moves deeper into its exhaustive offering, the soundscape continues to shift and evolve, haunting and chilling emotions whilst equally lighting their self-awareness. Simultaneously hypnotic and disturbing, the track is a mountainous emotional incitement which defies its length to provide a captivating examination.
Second track Witch Trial similarly emerges from a low key climate, military seeded rhythms strolling confidently as another spicily evocative western dusted ambience soaks ears. There is a repetitive rhythmic core which persists far into the encroaching verdict, shaped and coloured by the sonically fuelled melodic painting wrapping around its bait. Finally it makes way for the scene’s finale where the guitar casts its melodic tale alongside the mellow vocal tones of Davis. Sinister yet clad in emotive beauty, the song has a cinematic persuasion exploring thoughts, old and dark prejudices toiling with the brooding and fiery repercussions it leads too. As its predecessor, the track is a mouth-watering tale to immerse within and explore for constantly rewarding returns.
It is a thoroughly enjoyable and exciting album in which to discover Idre yet you feel it could have been even better and more impacting. Its production as pleasingly raw and imposing as the tracks it cloaks, does bleach out a lot of their potential potency too, smothering the ambiences and atmospheres and defusing some of the sonic craft and invention employed. Nevertheless the fact that this cannot stop the release impressing and being a thrilling start to an expected long-term presence of Idre certainly makes it all the more promising.
Idre is available now as a buy now name your price release @ http://idre.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/IdreBand
8.5/10
RingMaster 04/07/2014
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
Listen to the best independent music and artists on The RingMaster Review Radio Show and The Bone Orchard from
The RingMaster Review 
Leave a Reply