Yes, we know, how good were the times when we exchanged cassette tapes, bought an original vinyl a month, etc., etc., etc. Maybe “those times” seemed even better because most of that people were younger, thiner and quite a bit more hair. However, while it is true that today we are literally inundated with music all too easily available on the Web and often and willingly of dubious quality, it should always be remembered that the capacity for discernment, a hypothetical prerogative of human beings, should enable everyone to separate the rags from the silk. All of this tirade serves to introduce one of those classic works that, without the ability to reach the most recondite places and people on the globe with a click, would have remained the preserve of only the close friends of the musicians who composed it. Vagrond, in fact, are an Australian duo who, with Temporal, release a record (their third, and like the previous ones strictly self-produced) of rare quality and intensity; in deference to the DIY spirit that has always animated our webzine, I therefore feel it my duty to bring this beautiful work to the knowledge of the handful of people who habitually read my reviews. Authors of a well-balanced mix of so-called cascadian black metal, depressive and shoegaze, the two guys from Perth, with an album of such qualitative depth, deserve the attention of all fans even outside the distant oceanic lands. Take the spirituality-soaked black of Wolves In The Throne Room, combine them with the dreamy atmospheres of Alcest, and top it all off with some somber passages and a piercing scream worthy of Make A Change… Kill Yourself: this is, in broad strokes, what listening to Temporal will hold for you. Even if the standards of the aforementioned bands are not always reached, Vagrond stands on a surprisingly high level overall: one only has to listen to an inspired track like Time Is Fleeting to realize that what I am stating is not due to psychotropic substance abuse; to follow it up, The Tide, on the other hand, could stand as one of the best tracks on Les Voyages De L’Amee if only it had been recorded by Neige. Temporal delivers three quarters of an hour of excitement, and those who appreciate these sounds should definitely pop over to Vagrond‘s Bandcamp to get a more concrete feel for it; if then, even the manager of some forward-thinking label wanted to do the same, he might get unexpected satisfaction out of it.

2013 – Self Mutilation Services