CITY OF SHIPS

I appreciate atmospherics and ethereality, but generally speaking I read words like "post-rock", post-punk" or "post-whatthefuckever" and I throw up in my mouth a little. It's not always the case, as the shoe-gaze and lushness that one hears on albums by bands like ALTAR OF PLAGUES and WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM to use some progressive black metal examples or bands like ISIS to use everyone's favorite comparison point, all hit the mark for whatever reason (usually one that cannot accurately be described). You either get it or you don't I guess. I don't get it. Then again I never understood the allure of PLANES MISTAKEN FOR STARS either, while others would trade their lone functioning kidney for a chance to have an ass cheek signed by a member of the band.

Still, there was enough in the peaks and valleys of CITY OF SHIPS' "Look What God Did to Us" to make me want to investigate further, just not enough to keep me there. In typical fashion, the album rides waves of emotion, builds tension, then exhales as chords lift off the ground and drift amidst the clouds. When the band leaves the mellow, spacey material, which can be rather beautiful, and flips the heavy switch, the result is thunderous, even MASTODON-eque. The bass and six-string interplay can be engrossing as well, while the elements of grunge/indie rock that swoop in and out of the compositions are intriguing, but puzzlingly disjointed. The melody is present, but as for actual "hooks" (you know, as in hooking you in and keeping you there),I'm just not hearing it.

In the final analysis, "Look What God did to Us" may have the post-rockers skipping happily around the living room, praising the album as a new level in metal/rock artistry. And that's not to say that "Look what God Did to Us" doesn't deserve the accolades, unless it had the same effect on you as it did on me; that of being bored shitless with each and every listen. Slice and dice it any way you see fit. I still won't get it. Somehow I'm reminded of that old CHEMLAB thing, "Fuck art, let's kill."