Description
//Sargeant House//
£31.99 – 1xLP, Limited Edition Silver and Black Splatter Vinyl
Russian Circles’ fifth album Memorial is their most polarised to date, moving between moments of quiet, atmospheric beauty and overwhelming, distorted power. “We’ve always tried to balance our metal-influenced sounds with more nuanced, orchestral elements,” says bassist Brian Cook. “But this time, the contrasts are far more exaggerated.”
After two years of relentless touring following 2011’s Empros, the Chicago trio set out to make a darker, more streamlined record. Rejecting complexity for its own sake, the band focused on crafting individual songs with distinct moods and identities, resulting in a sequence that plays like chapters in a shifting narrative.
Structured to begin and end in the same place, the album closes with its title track—featuring a sombre guest vocal from Chelsea Wolfe. In a climate where genre-blending often leads to muddled results, Russian Circles embrace stark contrasts with intention and control, finding power in extremes rather than compromise.
