EP Review: Dirge – Alma | Baltica (Division Records)

Alma | Baltica is the latest album from French progressive/post-metal band, Dirge. Having been going for over 20 years, this new album redefines what the band are, an experimental release due out on December 15th 2017.

The one word that will jump to mind while listening to Alma | Baltica, is abstract. It’s an album created to leave you in awe at the atmospheric darkness, psychedelic sounds, haunting melodies & an undercurrent of melancholy.

The effects that wisp around the melody on opener Alma has an instantaneous effect on the mind. Like a warm bath after a long day at work, it’s so inviting & all you want to do is slip effortlessly into it.

Red Dawn Tibesti takes things in a different direction though. The echoing beat acting as a cry of war, the haunting melody like mist around your ankles & the bass adding just that little bit of edge. This is a dark track, one that conjures up cold environments where happiness seeps out of you like sweat.

Two different but equally as fascinating tracks.

The short & oppressive Black Shore adds a spacey element to proceedings before Baltica (Sine Time Reoscillated) does an outstanding job of leaving you feeling unsettled thanks to the mass of distortion.

A unusual but intriguing album comes to a close with the gloriously industrial atmospheric Pure. A track that soars through the clouds, the sun setting behind you as your mind frees itself from any doubt or sense of knowing.

Dirge have crafted something quite unique here. Not about delivering heaviness but more about delivering despondent ambience.

Dirge – Alma | Baltica Full Track Listing:

1. Alma
2. Red Dawn Tibesti
3. Black Shore
4. Baltica (Sine Time Reoscillated)
5. Pure

You can pick up Dirge’s music & merchandise over on Bandcamp. You can also listen to music over on Soundcloud & videos on YouTube. Find out more about Dirge via their website & Facebook Page.