Ashes Against the Grain

With every subsequent release, Agalloch found itself in an upward career trajectory, producing one fantastic album after another. After their magnum opus of a sophomore The Mantle, expectations were sky high and the boys from Portland did not disappoint. In many ways, Ashes Against the Grain runs The Mantle real close as the flagbearer of the band's finest output, a debate that still rages amongst the band's relatively teeny but devout fanbase. By some margin, it's also their heaviest, most proficient and refined album till date, with a flow that's much more linear and a sound that's more weighty and powerful. And unlike others, it does not squander time with wind sounds or long acoustic intros but immediately gets down to business; admittedly, Limbs does bestow itself a fairly lengthy intro of five or so minutes, but it's heavy and punchy from the get go, announcing its intent very clearly.

This is where the production hits you like a mallet - it's loud! Befitting the post-metal tendencies of the sound, it's modernised and more refined than anything else the band's put together, at times almost reminding me of Cult of Luna's production values. Every instrument is resolute, clear and very much perceptible all throughout. The bass especially is notoriously thick, getting even thicker as the album progresses and finding itself in its topmost form in the final few songs. What this does is allow the high end to soar and shine a bit more while also preserving a robust bottom-end. But it plays a small part in the macrocosm of this album’s sweeping melodies, acoustic interludes, raspy and elegant vocals and very expressive drumming. Yes, we have a dedicated drummer now. He may have had a short-lived career with Agalloch but Chris Greene is, in my opinion, the finest drummer they ever acquired. His drumming patterns aren't too complex or technical - they don't need to be - but he hammers home some very potent and dynamic fills, noticeable on all the fitting sections, with a slightly metallic, old-school sound to the snares. Just like the bass, the drums are a comprehensive part of the sound and work towards uplifting every other element for a combined resonant effect.

There’s so much tension, so much emotion in even the basic notes that even when they ease out on all the weight and heaviness, there’s still some underlying tension to the songs. They can change their approach altogether or use a different leading instrument and the songs will still have that weight and tension to them. The wall of sound effect or the oppressive stuff, as usual, takes center stage but it also serves as a great backdrop when the uplifting-sounding melodies take over, giving the songs a certain duality, a layer of sublime beauty floating above crushing weight. The generalised impression I get is of an album that keeps oscillating between the darker, more melancholic tunes and the lucid, more scintillating ones. Whenever the acoustic parts kick in, there's a momentary pause or silence which I think exacerbates their effect; these sections are kept generally minimalistic, sometimes deliberately raw and rough, which in consequence confers them a slight tinge of darkness, of a certain sorrow. The album, just like its cover, has a very monochromatic vibe to every single aspect.

The atmosphere is brought together by the shifting direction and progressiveness of the song structures, and as is the case with Agalloch, they utilise the same instrumentation for more or less the entire length - the same notes, chord progressions, tones and styles, spreading them lavishly on an expansive canvas. Limbs and Falling Snow, while stylistically apart, set a certain vibe and flow, which is kind of obtruded by Fire Above, Ice Below, the longest track on the album and somehow the most melancholic sounding. It's an album highlight in my opinion, exuding strong folk tendencies in its instrumental sections where melodism holds sway and aggressiveness takes a back seat. Hereon, you'll also hear the bass becoming more consonant with all the upper notes, to the point where it acts as a direct counterpoint against the rhythm and lead guitars more so than anything, sounding absolutely phenomenal in the process. The last few tracks, or rather the trilogy of Our Fortress Is Burning, encompasses a leaner, stripped-down approach that's heavy on acoustic guitars and mournful melodies, like a gradual fading of all life force before the eventual devastation that is the final track - a textural, ambient piece of just distorted (presumably) nature sounds, as if everything's engulfed in an eternal ravaging fire; the end of all matter, a total annihilation... That's my interpretation of it anyway.

The lyrics are relatively more cryptic on this one. While Pale Folklore was fantastical and almost poetic, we saw a manifestation of real human emotions The Mantle onwards, a theme that then stuck with the band. Reverence of nature and pantheism are other major themes bleeding through almost every song of theirs. While I'm pretty sure this is not a concept album, the last few songs do seem to skew towards that direction. I propose they make good use of numerous metaphors to signify mankind's continual abuse of nature that would lead to its own eventual destruction. But they also talk about Aurora Borealis, a very gratifying description of it on Not Unlike the Waves, which is in stark contrast to the darker, more nihilistic themes explored on other tracks.

I may be wrong here and correct me if I am, but if my memory serves me right, I think I'd read on a subreddit that John Haughm isn't a fan of this album, largely because it sounds too modern and refined compared to their other works. Well, he's welcome to have his opinion; he's one of its chief creators after all. But I hope he would be delighted than vexed to find the vast majority of his fanbase thinking otherwise and regarding this as not only their favourite Agalloch album but also the band's best one due to the very reasons he dislikes it for. Personally, I'm a huge fan of the refined touches and while, understandably, it is the demise of all character for some, I think it helps flourish a deeper connection with the nuances of the sound. And there are many on this one. Not only does it have some of the band's finest material, it can also contest as a Greatest Hits album of sorts, such is the popularity of nearly every individual song on here. As a full-blown album, it works wonderfully as one interconnected musical piece as opposed to a collection of songs - that extensive length of an hour will pass you by without you even knowing, leaving you craving for more; truly, not even The Mantle hides its length this effectively. The dynamism of its disposition is upheld by the acclaimed and treasured post-metal anthems like Limbs and Falling Snow, the folk-tinged and melancholic Fire Above, Ice Below, the old-school and thumping Not Unlike the Waves and the heart-wrenching but beautiful sequence of Our Fortress Is Burning. Well, the first two parts of it anyway.

All these years later and I still haven't found many bands that give me the same feeling Agalloch does; I don't think any band has mixed so many genre styles so well without sounding like a watered-down version of any of them. It is sometimes a very meditative experience and sometimes very oppressive and through that, cathartic. Undeniably, Ashes Against the Grain is another Agalloch masterpiece.