Toundra – Hex Review

I started 2020 with a 0.5, and the pandemic broke out. I started 2021 with a 1.5, and look where we are. Clearly, the quality of the first album I review in the year is prophetic for the quality of the year overall. I am a modern day Nostradamus, except even more abstract and with even fewer specifics. Since I want this year to be better than the last two,¹ I had better select my first promo with care. A band with plenty of experience, preferably over a decade of it, and perhaps 6 or so albums. A reliable label would be nice. Something prog or post or both, but not too much so. And considering many a decent album has been ruined by shit vocals, perhaps it’s best to pick something instrumental. Introducing to the stage: instrumental post-metal band Toundra, releasing their 7th album Hex on InsideOut.

And if this is predictive of the rest of the year, we got a lot to look forward to. Post-metal, particularly the instrumental kind, tends to be its own beast when it comes to songwriting, and Toundra have clearly mastered the craft. The “El Odio” trilogy of songs, that forms the front half, beautifully blends echoing, trilling, Explosions in the Sky-like leads of beauty and wonder with crashing, thundering cavalcades of drums and riffs that remind a fair bit of Dvne, a compliment of the highest order, without falling into established verse-chorus patterns. Like the last great instrumental post-metal album I reviewed, Ghosts of Glaciers’ excellent The Greatest Burden, Hex is all about the journey, flowing from movement to movement, and by frequently adjusting the dynamics and keeping the transitions both natural and interesting, Hex unspools like a dream.

Whereas The Greatest Burden was water, though, Hex is much more earthen, owing to the heavy rhythm section. The album’s second half presses this point with a solid foundation of thrumming bass and cascading drums, hitting a little harder than “El Odio” in terms of sheer sonic energy, but sacrificing a little of the dynamic songwriting showcased in the opening trilogy, partially due to their more compact nature. This does not take away from the quality of the tracks, however; “Ruinas” in particular has a rousing pace and killer riffs, and drummer Alex Pérez deserves special commendation for an incredible performance.

For all the versatility in the songwriting, though, the production lags terribly behind. When I was checking the embedded song below, I was immediately impressed with the performances, with the heft of the riffs and drums and the dreamy atmosphere. But I also hoped fervently that the brickwalled sound was a result of YouTube’s shitty compression algorithms. Alas, it’s hardly better on the promo, and really taxes the tonality of the music. Songwriting-wise, the album ends on a bit of a dud. The otherwise strong “Watt” runs a tad long, and closer “Fin” is little more than an atmospheric epilogue, an empty cycle of plucked strings that stops all progression and merely treads water for 5 minutes. It’s the opposite of ‘it is better to burn out than to fade away,’ and makes the tail of the album a sleepy affair.

These complaints are enough for me to doubt Toundra will be in my top 10 list of the year, but the smear stops there. Hex is an impressive start of the year, sporting numerous great riffs and drumming wrapped in an ever-evolving stream of consciousness that never, bar the closer, gets tedious, even on repeat spins. The flow from effervescent beauty to battering barrages of galloping drums and immediate hooks is Hexecuted with Hexpertise, and it’s a Hexperience in Hexcellence. Recommended for anyone with a passing interest in instrumental post-metal.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: InsideOut Music
Websites: toundra.bandcamp.com | toundra.es | facebook.com/toundra
Releases Worldwide: January 14th, 2021