COASTLANDS // THE FURTHER STILL - MILKY WHITE W/ RED BLACK SPLATTER VINYL (LP)

COASTLANDS // THE FURTHER STILL - MILKY WHITE W/ RED BLACK SPLATTER VINYL (LP)

RELEASE DATE: 2019

On their second release with dunk!records, Portland, Oregon’s Coastlands has crafted the collection of songs they feel finally represent the kind of sonic landscape they’ve always existed on but have previously held back from fully exploring in the studio. The result is by far their strongest, most aggressive and uncompromising work to date. Anyone who has had the opportunity to witness Coastlands in a live setting – including those who saw them play the inaugural dunk!usa – can attest that they are a much, much louder band than one would expect from only having heard their earlier studio work. If To Be Found can be considered the calm before the storm, then The Further Still is the full force of the maelstrom, washing away the primarily-subdued textures that once defined their studio work and replacing them with towering riffs, swirling melodies and a desperate immediacy that listeners will no doubt revel in as they clutch their fists, clench their teeth and ride these heroic waves of sound beyond the horizon.

Mixed and mastered by Jack Shirley (Deafheaven, Oathbreaker), The Further Still deftly balances loud and soft, with each approach serving the other rather than simply co-existing separately within the compositions. Look, for instance, to “Bottomfeeder,” which charges out of the gate during a fiery opening half and needs a moment of quiet reprieve to provide the right variance in tone. However, this moment lasts only long enough for listeners to gasp for a few breaths before plunging back into triumphant riffs lovingly bathed in heavy distortion. The Further Still is a record made by musicians who have always treasured opportunities to rock with feverish force but have for various reasons held back from fully embracing such desires; listeners will be delighted to hear their love of maximum volume pouring forth like an infinite river that had been trapped too long behind a bulging dam. 

Such moments can be found everywhere on The Further Still. From the epic build-and-release of “Keepsake,” to the energizing midsection of “Tired Eyes” to the raucous riff worship of lead single “Quiet Beneath the Yangtze River,” this is the record that Coastlands has always wanted to make, and it’s a reward for patient post-rock fans everywhere who feel like they are sometimes neglected when it comes to full-on aural assault.

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