That new opus was meant to be longer, darker, more violent and more conceptual than the previous one. It takes as its central theme the unavoidable collapse of the post-modern world impacted by man's vicissitudes and deals with some consequences (both collective and individual) of human activities or productions.
The theme of anthropocene is put forward from the very beginnng, through the first track, closely followed by the themes of the insatiable thirst for the absolute, of broken, unreachable, excessive or just crazy dreams of humans, prisoners of their destiny (« Dreams of a prisoner »). The piece « Hopeless » puts the finishing touch to this idea.
The second part of the album opens up on « Psyche of autumn » that brings a poetic and ethereal outburst comparable with the melodious tones existing on « Premonition ». This piece of music that implicitly calls to mind the seasons' disturbance and their essences being progressively disappearing is also one of the most rhythmic tracks of the album and underlines some « math-rock » elements through a rich use of marked delay.
The next track, called « Walls instead of bridges » refers to the item of migrants and the way people welcome them in some places of the globe. It aims at making people being aware of the tragic situation in which these people are and puts a finger on authoritarian answers set up to respond to their calls.
The album closes on the track « Locked-in syndrome », a heavy and rare neurological disorder concerning people having their mental or inner life trapped in their body that does not respond any more. This title is a metaphor for isolation, withdrawal, distorted communication, life by proxy and loneliness generated by our society and some of its technological products.
credits
released March 27, 2020
Music by First Came The Shadow
Recorded, mixed and mastered at Old Tree Studio (Salon-de-Provence, France) by Thomas Palmade
Artworks by Clément Blum - phorms.artstation.com
I became a big fan with there first album and it got heavy rotation in my evening listening sessions. Every track is stellar and unique in itself. Astodan has the unique ability to bring both raw and controlled emotion and power within every song. I will be purchasing this album and their new live album on wax shortly. Astodan has become not only my favorite band right now but their music is in all my playlists. If I could see one band before I die, this is the band. Frederick Jones
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