I missed the initial release of this album in 2017 so as far as I’m concerned this is a new experience. Mish are from Australia and as a progressive metal band have shared the stage with sleepmakeswaves and We Lost the Sea who I do know about, and as I understand have carved out a good reputation as a live band. This is their second album following the release of “The Entrance” in 2011.
It is clear from the beginning that Mish know how to create an expansive soundscape. The patient but purposeful build-up of “Artax” reminded me greatly of the band Isis’s “Panopticon”. But while having that strong post-rock feel, it develops into deeper, dynamic, darker territory. The roars are strong. The riffs are heavy. Shame it ended, but Mish whisk us away without delay into further fields of progressive heaviness. This isn’t an instrumental band but I credit Mish for what it’s worth for allowing the instrumentals free rein and with it creating a clear and purposeful scene of life and danger. The growling vocalist has an impressive set of lungs furthermore. All kinds of weird noises make up “Catacomb” before the heavy technical strains of “Lyre Bird” take over. “Mastodon by way of Isis and Meshuggah” is a way that Mish are described. Yep, I can go with that. What’s noticeable after that patient beginning is how quickly the time passes listening to this album. Mish don’t waste time.
So far most of what I’d heard was exciting and vibrant. Now the title track comes along. It too is dynamic but it is aerier and is more born of a summer’s day. Apart from the lush guitar work, the drum patter is soothing and there is a haunting chorus in the background, giving this song layers of sophistication. A darker pattern surrounds “Pinata”, which curiously descends into silence before bouncing back with an Opeth style attack. A heavy progressive instrumental wave follows, interspersed as ever by little subtleties of sound. The vocalist comes out roaring and we are a long way away from the bright ambience of “Entheogen”. And this is the beauty of this album: Mish never stop, instead guiding through a myriad of soundscapes like a journey. “Socrates” is along the lines of a classic post-rock song, playfully building up the power. It’s all too brief and inconclusive but there’s no time to lose as we enter the wonderful cascading territory of “Lung”. If I have one small criticism of this album, it’s that Mish seem in a great rush to take us to new territories, where here and there I would have liked to linger a while. This is most certainly the case with “Lung”. As if to wake us up from our dream, we are then faced with the ferocious djent assault of “Vertebrae”. That was too extreme a transition for me but again I can’t fault the musicianship, the power or the excitement of it. It’s all over quickly enough and this schizophrenic work then takes a spooky turn with the dark “Thylacine”. Amid the strange sounds and acoustic progression, Mish create an expanse of goose-bumping melancholy. It’s a great and memorable way to end.
I’m very glad I now know about Mish and equally glad that the label decided to reissue this album. I can see what the fuss is all about with Mish, and can imagine that one of their live performances could be mentally draining in a most enjoyable way. For now, we have “Entheogen”, and it is a clear example of how talented this band is.
(8.5/10 Andrew Doherty)
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