Echoes of Yul/Guantanamo Party Program/Sun for Miles split CD

Another intriguing release from Polish label We are All Pacinos, this three-way split CD sees Polish acts Echoes of Yul, Guantanamo Party Program, and Sun for Miles teaming up for an hour's worth of damn fine material. Echoes of Yul gets things started with four new tracks of their top-notch doom/drone/sludge, and this material is even better than their self-titled full-length from last year! Expect thick, pulsing drones and crushing power chords accentuated by eerie clean guitars, swirling ambient noise textures, industrialized percussion and arrangements, and superbly utilized samples that tend to feel like vocal contributions. There are some actual vocals present this time out as well, and despite their sparse appearances the styles include both strained, grunted shouts and spoken/sung passages—all lightly filtered and manipulated with assorted affects. And of course there are all of the subtle melodic elements that really add an extra level of emotion and intensity to the compositions (best exemplified by excellent closer "The Stand"). If you can imagine Godflesh/Jesu, Isis, and Pitchshifter thrown into in a blender, the result would probably be fairly close to this, and it's fucking awesome. Guantanamo Party Program follows with two lengthy tracks offering up a more stripped down, aggressive, and riff-based take on similar influences. Angular guitar textures, dissonant melodies, ethereal hums and drones, and occasional samples are all present, but the core of their attack is very heavily centered on pounding power chord rhythms and gruff vocals. Killer riffs and powerful soft/loud transitions work wonders for this band, though, and I'd quite like to hear more of what they have to offer. Sun for Miles then closes things out with three similarly lengthy instrumental compositions that combine the stripped down and riff-centric approach of Guantanamo Party Program with Echoes of Yul's looser and more repetitious structures—adding in slick, roaming pulses of bass and swirling guitar effects that lend more of a tactful "post-rock" atmosphere to some of the softer moments. Don't let that fool you, though, as the bulk of their work here is crushing, in your face, and loaded with the kind of awesome discordant riffs that are right up my alley (granted the final track is a full-on dark ambient noise piece). This is an outstanding split when all is said and done. Highly recommended for fans of this particular niche of metal.

Echoes of Yul "The Stand" (excerpt)
Guantanamo Party Program "Six Feet Under (alt. version)" (excerpt)
Sun for Miles "Barb of Sorrow" (excerpt)

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We are All Pacinos