If you read my review of District Unknown’s album “Anatomy Of A 24 Hour Lifetime”, you probably wonder…what has happened to that band and is there anything equally interesting coming from Afghanistan?
We will discover what has happened to District Unknown a bit later, but the answer to the second (part of the) question is a resolute YES! Because, ladies and gentlemen longing for the interesting music from far away lands, AFREET is basically a half of the District Unkown.
Hopefully, I will talk to guys soon, so we will have an interview with Afreet, but for now, let’s have a look at their first offering, the firstfruits of their existence as this band.
“Afreet” is a 2019 EP and I can say with a delight – it’s not as good as District Unknown album – nah, it’s even better! And if you remember that I liked “Anatomy…” a lot, then there’s not surprise I fell in love with “Afreet” immediately.
No wonder, the opening “Purposed For the Balance”, is almost 10 minutes long sludge/post-metal epic, it’s like a slow moving bulldozer, leveling everything in its path. Yousef Shah’s vocals are somewhere between growling proclamations and whispers, and fit the music perfectly.
“Ectopotence” continues where the opening track left off, I immediately loved the bass line, the melodies and the vocals elevate this track above its precedessor and I have to say, you can really feel the energy flowing through the speakers (or, in my case, earphones). Almost 6 minutes of heavy goodines, what’s not to like here.
“Shadows in the Terminus” is the third track of this fantastic debut EP, and again, we’re not deviating a iota from the journey set. I like to view it as a journey…the underlying distorted guitar and bass serve as the background, while the riffing and voices are the guides in the landscape Afreet bring to your aural senses. It’s the shortest track on the EP, with 3:05 on the clock. And I can listen to it on repeat, yes.
Closing is “Incorrigible Union”, with the nice instrumental start, the sound of guitar string mixed with various ambient sounds, creating the image of the void plane, only to enter into the next phase with almost alarming sounds, Yousef’s voice is almost like pleading with the listener, the insistence in his voice almost palpable. Definitely the fantastic climax of this release, the mix with the full-force sludge and the instrumental, minimalistic passages creates a feeling of unrest on the one side combined with the soothing calmness and assurance.
Pair it with the interesting cover art and you have a release you don’t want to miss, if you like interesting, intelligent music.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/album/4HALRlPVIO4h4r9YPmKpq0?si=dt2JVFzoQx-PK0euOjumLQ
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/afreetofficial/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afreet_band_official/
Bandcamp: https://afreetmusic.bandcamp.com/
