A gripping post-rock success, WORLD-ENDING FIRE is the self-titled debut album from the collaboration of Canadian guitarist and producer Paul MacLean and Swedish drummer Tony Lind, recorded together in a remote cabin in the forest outside Uppsala, Sweden. Its atmospheric post-rock compositions transform reflections on conflict, environmental destruction, personal loss, and new fatherhood into expansive, emotionally charged instrumental passages.

A resonant, symphonic swell opens the album as “Fear (and no foretelling)” unveils itself, easing a string-laden undercurrent amidst droning textures. A lovely expanse takes hold just before the two-minute mark, infusing hypnotic bass, glistening guitars, and a percussive pit-patter as the backing orchestral quality continues to engross with fully illuminated emotion; the build-up reminds fondly here of Sigur Rós. Next up, “A Smoke Column Rises Near Shining Bank AB (for CrazyChris)” is even more dynamic in its climactic structure, gradually building upon shimmering guitar textures before a second-half arrival of strings, lush guitars, and eventual walls of gripping distortion; this production feels more akin to World’s End Girlfriend.

Another standout track, “Those Who Had Wanted To Go Home (would never get there now)” delights in its experimental-embracing introduction, where snippets of reversed-sounding electronics maneuver into thunderous percussion and simmering post-rock guitar work. These interesting flickers of ambience lend themselves well to the grounded rock appeal, delighting in the mixture of consistent rhythms and alternating intensity within the instrumentation. Finale “Day-blind stars (waiting with their light)” stirs as well, its nocturnal-friendly soundscape driven by subdued guitar trickling and wavering synth tones, ascending into a theatrically intense effervescence across its second half. WORLD-ENDING FIRE is a fantastic album, consistently consuming in its atmospheric and momentum-filled productions from Paul MacLean and Tony Lind.

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“Those Who Had Wanted To Go Home (would never get there now)” and other tracks featured this month can be streamed on the updating Obscure Sound’s ‘Emerging Singles’ Spotify playlist.

We discovered this release via MusoSoup.

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