T E S A - I N T E R V A L (2025)

The Latvian TESA is a band that never disappoints. Never. The Baltic giants create their metal-like heavy post-rock or rock-like light post-metal with grace and with consistency that characterize only great artists. Although their new album is entitles Interval, it doesn't feel like it's any kind of transition or pause. It's as good as ever been and ever will be, I'm sure of it.

The Eastern equivalent of the French heavy noise of Year of No Light start the album with a fast and heavy hit in the face. While the long tracks change pace and melodies very often, the first seconds of the album are here to remind you, dear listener, what are you signing up for. A hurricane of massive sounds that are designed to spare no one. It's interesting that the tracks are so diverse: there is many sudden changes so when the listener is emerged in one of the passages, they are brutally waken up from the trance by a different melody, different direction the track suddenly switches to.

Nevertheless, the sound here is quite literally overwhelming and forcing you to stop and fall in love with its relentless power. This is the very nature of TESA. 

I N T E R V A L costs 9 EUR.

Check: Interval II

Country: Latvia

Genre: massive post-rock

Label: My Proud Mountain

T E S A - C O N T R O L (2020)

TESA - G H O S T ( 2015)

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A Farewell to Words - AFTW (2022)

This seems to be a good time for post-rock in Latvia. I have recently posted about EYRTH, there is TESA, one of my favourite post-rockers worldwide, and now it's time for Riga-based trio A Farewell to Words. And although they have already appeared on my blog (lon time ago, I already forgot about it to be honest), AFTW is their debut LP.

Although the Latvian artists claim to draw inspirations from both shoegaze, post-punk and metal music, the post-rock they present is clearly mostly influenced by the latter. The guitar-oriented compositions are based on the very metal-like riffs with occasional angry vocals (Patriks Palsāns in Mriya) and those characteristic, blackened vibes. While it's not like the artists don't care about the atmospheric part of their music, it is probably true that they are more focused on the heaviness and melodic intensity. But this stops being true towards the end of the album with more traditionally post-rock Painfully Aware. 

AFTW costs 7.77 EUR.

A Farewell To Words - Matter Of Heart (2018)

Check: Mriya

Country: Latvia

Genre: heavy post-rock

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EYRTH - Meridian (2022)

The Latvian EYRTH creates their "uranium wreckage in audio" or post-rock/post-metal massive sounds for five years now and this is their second LP.  And so Meridian brings tons of overwhelming atmosphere and it is extremely satisfying.

Although the intro gives dark ambient vibes, the album quickly speeds up to its limits. The guitars are extremely heavy, doom metal-like but filtered by the post-metal atmosphere and noisy vibes. This combination brings fantastic results: it is dark, it is overwhelming, it is immersive. The music here fluctuates: sometimes it is closer to instrumental ambient, but usually it comes up to the heavens of loudness. The ambient passages slowly developing into deafening crescendos is how the album's longest track, Elliptic, is structured and everybody has to agree that it's something spectacular. But the whole album sounds like a whole that had been well thought through by the band: the calmer parts prepare the audience for louder hits, the louder hit deliver satisfying walls of noise and if it wasn't for the Spotify's playlist, I wouldn't know where one track begins and another ends.

Meridian costs whatever you want to pay.

Check: Fallout

Country: Latvia

Genre: atmospheric post-metal

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Last Victorian Death Squad - Just In Case I Never See You Again (2021)

The Leeds and Riga-based Last Victorian Death Squad have been releasing their music with Shore Dive Records for some time now, but previously their material didn't really strike the cord with me. It all changed this July with the EP entitled Just In Case I Never See You Again.

The "purveyors of violent noise and blissful melodies" showed four energetic and noisy songs that simply burst with energy. The particularly noisy and chaotic backgrounds bring the psychedelic trance-like experience to the mix, while very much rock-like vocals give a lot of lively, danceable vibes. This is some shoegazey rock'n'roll here - the one you expect people to crazily dance to during live gigs. And similarly, the lyrics are also mostly about love, some experiences you can share with the artists but it's nothing that would be a downer preventing you from partying. I especially like Kiev, the track the EP's title comes from and one that talks about what is probably the most beautiful aspect of love - the fear of longing after the other person.

Just In Case I Never See You Again costs 3 USD.

Check: Kiev 

Country: UK/Latvia

Genre: noisy indie rock

Label: Shore Dive Records

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Res Magnifica -- Dream, Still (2021)

The Latvian drone artist appeared on this blog already with a split album with his Russian counterpart Accasari. This time it's time for his solo album released by Noyade Records in April.

The album is filled with sounds coming from the "contemplation of nature, melancholic thoughts with the unhurried rumble and noises from the depths of the Forest". The soundscapes here are spacious and calm, with the drone noise smooth and soothing rather than unnerving. This corresponds with the album's title as the music is more of a dream and less of a nightmare, more still and less lively. And very beautiful.

Dream, Still costs 3 EUR.

Accasari / Res Magnifica - Split (2019) EN

Check: Glory of Winter 

Country: Latvia

Genre: drone soundscape

Label: Noyade Records

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T E S A - C O N T R O L (2020) EN

The Latvian band TESA was exactly the third I posted about on this blog, almost precisely four years ago. Time flies and if you want to say something about the post-rockers, it would be that they are only getting better. Their newest album called C O N T R O L simply pounds one to the ground.

I love when the top quality guitar sounds get so loud, massive and exciting that it's almost dangerous. And the Latvians have those as it's audible from the very first seconds of Control 1. It won't be any exaggeration when I say that their massiveness brings awe and fear at the same time, first class post-rock - dark and overpowering. And then there's also the f a n t a s t i c, "broken" finish that makes my spine thrill.

But it would be wrong to say that this is definitely the best track of the album as the rest is simply at least as good. Control 3 brings some breaks which does, however, quickly turns into a marching and so epic Control 4 and so it goes until the very end, an extremely impressive one too, one after which  you have to take a pause to get yourself together. One of the best post-rock albums this year, no doubts.

C O N T R O L costs 6 EUR.

TESA - G H O S T ( 2015) EN

Check: Control 1

Country: Latvia

Genre: massive post-rock

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Accasari / Res Magnifica - Split (2019) EN

I consider the Russian Accasari for one of the masters of overflowing ambient-noise sounds. This time they released a really well done split with the next-to-unknown Latvian project Res Magnifica.

The first, Latvian part of the album consists of not really unique but quite engaging, gloomy and slow drone. It's also not too loud so can easily be listened to at nights without having to deal with angry neighbours. Similarly the Russian part, but at the same time you can here a different approach here. The music here comes in waves and mesmerizes the audience and it's not an easy task to do. Anyway, a solid dose of good drone.

Split costs whatever you want to pay.

Accasari - Fracture (2018) EN

Check: Wave of Thorns

Country: Russia/Latvia

Genre: mesmerizing drone

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Reverb Moonlight - There's a Bonfire in My Living Room (2019) EN

Reverb Moonlight come from Riga and play super interesting music using a broad spectre of instruments. This one-of-a-kind art rock of theirs can be listened to on their new album quite suitably entitled There's a Bonfire in My Living Room.

The Latvians create this intriguing combination of complex folk with many interesting instruments with art rock The Decemberists-style and a pinch of post-rock. It somehow reminds me of Her Name Is Calla, especially in those acoustic fragments where the backgrounds are made of chilling guitar noise (My Short Consolation). The essence of their music is shown in the long Sectioning Suite with its more folk, "over-talked" parts and the wonderfully atmospheric finish. 

The second part of the album is still the same moody post-folk with the brilliant Concise, surprisingly upbeat violins in Moss (Demented Angel) and the most fitting ending in Don't Ask, pts. 1 & 2.

There's a Bonfire in My Living Room costs 5 EUR.

Check: Don't Ask, pts. 1 & 2

Country: Latvia

Genre: folk art rock

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Darja Kazimira & Dagmar Gertot - Ο θάνατος του Ταύρου (Death of The Bull) (2019) EN

Darja Kazimira is one of my favourite lesser known artists. And it's an artist with various talents as her photos and graphic works make a source of endless inspirations for me. The music side of her career is shown on the new album, Ο θάνατος του Ταύρου, recorded together with Dagmar Gertot.

The album is filled with very dark and very abstract folk music. The two artists fill it with the sounds of Georgian chuniri, Balkan dvojnice, Hindu gyaling (Kazimira), Roman barbitonu, Australian didgeridoo (Gertot) and many more, sometimes more, sometimes less obvious instruments. And there are also the vocals and howlings adding, together with amazing descriptions, to the album's clearly occult-witch  atmosphere. The album is as far from the brisk folk as it can be, it's more an experimental symphony of pain played on crying and feminist message. Touching.

Ο θάνατος του Ταύρου costs 9.99 EUR.

Check: U mom srcu starost (Hoar in my heart)

Country: Latvia

Genre: dark experimental folk

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A Farewell To Words - Matter Of Heart (2018) EN

There's no post-rock band that has more genre-fitting name than the Latvian A Farewell To Words. Their music is made of "riffs, colored by influences of punk and blackened metal", and their new EP, Matter Of Heart, shows their big guitar potential.

The album's titles is taken from the movie document about Carl Gustav Jung, together with samples that enrich two of the tracks. But the band's inspirations go further and reach also American poetry (The Road Not Taken). But the most important is how they sound. This is rather traditional post-rock music with usually quite delicately and melodically rocking guitars and clear drums, but at times they transform into rather big, almost metal-like noise.

Matter Of Heart costs 4.99 EUR.

Check: Reflection

Country: Latvia

Genre: guitar post-rock

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WatchCamp June'18 Darja Kazimira, Film School, otom, thewalkingicon, Tony Anderson (2018) EN

Darja Kazimira - Хтона - моја Majka

Pagan enchantmnets by the artist who was the first topic posted on this blog. The Latvian comes back with her psychedelic dark pagan folk. Perhaps a full-length album soon? The track costs (1 EUR).

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Film School - Crushin

One of those Californian shoegazes that make the whole world follow them, new track, the new album in autumn. The single costs whatever you want to pay.

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otom - Without You

Delicately sang shoegaze from Japan, the airy vocal meets lively, industrial music and absolutely benefits from this encounter. Worth attention. The track costs 1.2 EUR (150 JPY).

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thewalkingicon - Dead Heart

Gothic trip-hop knocking the listeners down with its electronic grandeur and brilliant, insanely catchy chorus. The Moscow-based band's music is worth-checking, a new single out soon. This one, together with a remix, costs whatever you want to pay.

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Tony Anderson - Finding Your Heart

The single from an announced album called "CHASM" (out in August) by the American artist from Kentucky. Anderson's music makes a cinematic electronics sounding as if post-rock was played with samples and keys. Three version of the track (a shorter and a piano only ones as bonus) cost 2 USD.

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George Will - Dawn (2017) EN

Phe-no-me-nal album was born in Latvia. Jurģis Narvils, guitarist of post-rocking Audrey Fall, stage name George Will has created the most beautiful and moody album that is also a soundtrack to the most beautiful movie you can imagine. Not much to add, you have to hear it.

Every title on the album has four letters. But there’s more things in common - first of all, wonderful atmosphere. The leitmotif is made from delicacy evolving into mystical noise. The first sounds of “Dawn” are beautiful keys and strings that after a while change into heavy guitars introduced by rhythmical like heartbeats drums. You can hear instantly in which moment of the song the sun finally rose and the gray dawn turned into warm day. I could hardly select the parts of the album that are especially worth listening to because the whole album intimidates with beauty. Like “Aeon” and its nervous pulse that ends up in total noise. Like raw “Rust”. Like epic “Iris”. Like my favourite “Rhea” that awes with almost everything. Impossible to choose. 

The thing is that if you are turned by strings, touched by keys and a guitar noise makes you ecstatic, George Will will serve you the best music. For long, lonely nights when you want to cry out of affection instead of sadness.

"Dawn" is available for 5 EUR.

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TESA - G H O S T ( 2015) EN

To finish the Latvian escapade a band of considerably well established position - TESA. The Latvians combine backgrounds full of noisy tension with a slow, sludge-like pace but their music is mostly about massive guitare shock waves coming and going like rising tide with ambient moments of peace in between. There's more melancholy in their music than anger, it's loud but clear, more melodic than noisy.

G H O S T was mastered by James Plotkin whoo is responsible for mastering e.g. SUNN O)). You can buy the album for 5 EUR on Bandcamp - it's 12 cents for one minute only.

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Darja Kazimira - Εσχατος (2015) EN

To continue the music voyage throughout Latvia, it's time for a really offstream artist. Suffice it to say that Darja Kazimira on her Bandcamp put a link (among others) to her private Facebook profile. Not much is known about her except that she comes from Riga and creates great music.

Εσχατος is a captivating album; dark ambient harmonizes with ritual chanting which in some parts reminds of gorey pagan rituals around bonfires while in other sound like gregorian chants caught within cold church walls. Afterall, Darja Kazimira herself cites "Faust" under her "I Am The Spirit That Always Denies":

I am the spirit that always denies.
I have the right to do so,
since everything that comes into being deserves to be annihilated.
Of course, it would have been much better,
had nothing started in the first place.
So therefore, everything that you call Sin,
Destruction, Evil, is my proper element.

Her music is diabolical but exactly in this sad way of being diabolical. Let's hope the album is not her final work as the title (eschatos (Gr.) - last) suggests.

Εσχατος  costs 1 EUR only.

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Gas of Latvia - Swan Lake (2015) EN

This summer my path led me far noth, further than the Polish border, further than Kaunas and Vilnius. I took part in a festival of a rocking deer, a festival on an island on a lake in the middle of the green desolation of the northern Lithuania - Mėnuo Juodaragis. And on this festival on an island I found, and it was quite difficult to find, a tiny stage - hidden in the middle of dense forest, looking like a ruffians' shack. It had a sloping roof and hardly enough place under it for two people and a table to make some DJ wizardry on it. In the middle of the night, the stage lit up with lights and lasers and electronic sounds straight from Livonia. I will be coming back to this place.

To say a proper good evening - one of my Mėnuo Juodaragis findings: Gas of Latvia. Andris Indāns solo project who on his album is accompanied by vocalist and cellist. Both the vocals of Indāns and Anna Kirse may be more fitting for a cold-wave music but they are warmed up by variety of samples that stretch from suggesting some music mystery (Sniegavīrs) to inviting to dancefloor (Labdien, mans nezināmais draugs). No wonder that GoL posted a proud picture together with the trip-hop legend Tricky.

Swan Lake (a perfect name to be the first post on this blog) was registered in Gassound studio and published by NABA MUSIC /MELO RECORDS. You can buy it on Bandcamp for 8 EUR.

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