Album of the Week: Gnosis by Russian Circles

Album: Gnosis
Artist: Russian Circles
Release Date: August 19, 2022
Label: Sargent House
Thoughts: I like to try to move out of my musical comfort zones, and one genre I’ve never had much interest in is Heavy Metal.  A few years ago, a friend of mine who’s knowledgeable in Metal gave me a primer on the genre, and among the bands he introduced me to was Russian Circles.  He correctly determined that their “post-rock” instrumental music would appeal to me (I’m put off by the vocals in most Metal bands).

Despite the name, Russian Circles is an American trio based in Chicago.  Gnosis is their 8th album.  The loud-quiet-loud dynamics work well, alternating between raging guitars and trancelike meditative passages.  The music to me sounds very cinematic as if this were a film score made with a Metal aesthetic.

Rating: ****

 

Album of the Week:  2022

January

• Olivia Rodrigo – Sour
• Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever
• Adele –30 
• Tran Uy Duc – Came
• Yard Act – The Overload
• Aoife O’Donovan – Age of Apathy

February

• Tanya Taqaq – Tongues
• Various Artists – Summer of Soul soundtrack
• Mitski – Laurel Hell
• Shamir – Hetrosexuality

March

• Lady Pills – What I Want
• Stromae – Multitude
• Jenny Hval – Classic Objects
• Yumi Zouma – Present Tense

April

• Ibibio Sound Machine – Electricity
• Soul Glo – Diaspora Problems
• The Linda Lindas – Growing Up
• Deer Scout – Woodpecker
• Sault – Air

May

• Congotronics International – Where’s the One?
• Oumou Sangaré – Timbuktu
• Various Artists – Daptone Mood
• Wet Leg – Wet Leg

July

• Editrix – Editrix Goes To Hell
• Medicine Singers – Medicine Singers
• Mourning [A] BLKstar – Celestial Bodies
• Lizzo – Special
• The Ballroom Thieves – Clouds

August

• Petrol Girls – Baby
• Beyoncé – Renaissance
• Peter Mulvey and SistaStrings – Love is the Only Thing

September

• Courtney Swain – Silver Lining