Semuta to Release Debut LP Glacial Erratic May 24; Title-Track Video Posted
Posted in Whathaveyou on April 3rd, 2024 by JJ Koczan
I don’t know at whose house Semuta filmed the video for the first single and title-track from their upcoming debut album, Glacial Erratic, but with that skate ramp in the back yard, a P.A., and plenty of room for an entire crowd of people — plus at least one chainsaw — to chase some dude out, it looks like a pretty killer spot. “Glacial Erratic” is the first I’ve heard of the two-piece with Benjamin Caragol on guitar/vocals and Ben Stoller on drums, but the reason I’m posting about it is that after hearing it, I’m curious to hear more, so take that as you will. The way the descriptions below align to post-metal with some emotive current through it presents an immediate purpose in aesthetic terms. A goal they’re working toward.
Glacial Erratic is up for preorder from the band on Bandcamp, which I’m sure you know because you probably hang out with these guys and you’re probably in the video because you have friends and aren’t alienated from everyone around you including your family sitting right on the other couch as you beeline on your trajectory to being someone’s divorced asshole dad whose kid never speaks to you again — at least I’m liberal — and the video’s at the bottom of the post. I don’t have anything else to add here that doesn’t round out to hating myself while I wait for the gummy to kick in so I don’t have to think about it anymore or at least not with the words moving so fast in my brain, so here you go. Enjoy:
SEMUTA: Portland post-metallers debut title track from new album “Glacial Erratic”; official music video features members of Usnea, Dark Castle, more
Preorder: https://semutamusic.bandcamp.com/album/glacial-erratic
Semuta is the duo of guitarist/vocalist Benjamin Caragol and drummer Ben Stoller, former members of noted Rose City bands Burials, Dark Numbers, and more. Together as Semuta, the two summon a mournful strain of sludgy post-metal, marked by enthralling songcraft and passionate execution.
Mixed by Scott Evans at Antisleep Audio (Kowloon Walled City, Great Falls) and mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege (Portrayal of Guilt, Torche), debut full-length Glacial Erratic depicts an ocean of melancholy, punctuated by triumphant swells. Its five songs unfold over the course of 37 minutes, with Caragol’s rich, clean vocals soaring over icy lulls and metallic eruptions. Navigating gentle interludes, tense buildups peppered with odd time signatures, and heroic climaxes, Stoller delivers rock-solid beatings in the Bonham tradition and Caragol unfurls a spectrum of six-string magic, all in service of the songs’ momentum.
Caragol states: “When I was a kid all I really cared about was metal, but around the time I was 15 or 16 I started to branch out. A big moment for me was seeing Radiohead for the first time. I had never seen a group of musicians so willing to dispense with conventions, and explore such a wide array of sounds. After that I was drawn to heavy bands that experimented with sonics, odd times, and emotive melodies; bands like Neurosis, Converge, Godspeed… I really appreciate music that pushes boundaries while maintaining a lot of feeling. I want the music we make to be ambitious, but I also want it to resonate with people emotionally.”
Caragol’s goal, to create music that challenges the mind whilst stirring the soul, has been realized with Glacial Erratic, an album likely to hook the ears of any fan of progressive heavy music, from Russian Circles to Cave In and beyond.
Revealing the themes at play behind the new album, Caragol states: “Most of our songs are about the ways in which human systems are failing us. Governments waging endless war. Corporations hoarding wealth and exploiting natural resources at the cost of an inhabitable planet. The abandonment and persecution of our most vulnerable populations. It’s hard to look at our civilization and not see a gaping wound. And most people bury their heads in the gutter of social media and vapid entertainment; a desperate attempt to hold onto fleeting moments of joy as the world around us falls apart.”
In contrast to the grave messaging, the official music video for the album’s title track sports a lighthearted, B-movie tone. Directed by renowned documentarian of Portland’s metal and punk scenes, Shelby Kray, the video sees a party at a backyard skateboard ramp devolve into hallucinatory horror. Making cameos are a bevy of Semuta’s hometown friends, including members of Usnea, Dark Castle, Armed for Apocalypse, Stoneburner, Nasalrod, and more. “Portland has a pretty thriving music scene,” says Caragol, in regards to the video casting. “There’s a wide variety of bands, and the music community is pretty close knit.”
The Glacial Erratic album artwork was created by Ashleigh Caragol, with design and layout by Justin Cory. The album follows one self-titled EP, released by the band in 2020.
Semuta has announced a string of West Coast dates for the spring, teaming up with such bands as Conan and Heiress along the way.
Apr 18 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios (w/ Conan)
May 31 – Portland, OR @ The High Water Mark (w/ Yellfire)
June 1 – Bellingham, WA @ Make Shift (w/ Melancholia)
June 2 – Seattle, WA @ The Sunset Tavern (w/ Heiress)
June 8 – Santa Rosa, CA @ Shady Oak (w/ Ex Everything)
June 9 – Oakland, CA @ The Stork Club (w/ Ex Everything)
Tracklist:
1) Toeing the Line
2) A Distant Light
3) Glacial Erratic
4) Selective Memory
5) Wounds at the Stem
Lineup:
Benjamin Caragol – guitar, bass, vocals
Ben Stoller – drums
https://www.facebook.com/semutapdx/
https://www.youtube.com/@SEMUTAPDX
https://semutamusic.bandcamp.com/
