Over the last 2 years or so, Sam Gruca has been musically documenting their journey through grief and loss. “The Omens in My Bones” is the emotional end result.
“Entering The Portal” acts as a mood gradient, that goes from gentle rumblings to being plunged into blistering noise. “Heavy Bodies” settles us down a bit, and makes good use of low-end frequencies, which carry the haunting vocal above a creeping cacophony of distortion. “Energy Field” and “Blood Void” kick up the harsher elements, with the latter offering occasional spots of reprieve revealing the electronics hiding behind the abrasion. All of this feels like a violent loss, a coping mask, and private struggles.
“There Is No Time/There Is No Death” features a dialogue sample where someone is giving a testimony on some kind of out-of-body experience, providing details while swarms of scuttling electronics dance throughout. It feels unsettling, but the person speaking clearly feels they’ve ultimately found peace of some kind. This is the epiphanic moment where the hurt begins to truly heal.
“Twisted Flesh” sees the return of hymnal dream vocals accompanied by an ever rising synthesized choir; allegory for rediscovering one’s voice, perhaps. Lastly, “Meet Me In The Realm Of The Shallow Seas” brings back the low crackling dissonance, ebbing and sloshing about like shore crashing waves. They’ve set out into the unknown, to reconnect with who they were and forge who they will become.
If you’re looking to get your feet wet in some noisy waters, this is a great place to warmly submerge.
Pick up the album, CD or Download, from Mutual Aid Records.
Check out more from Pain Chain on their Bandcamp page.