Eidola blew me away last year, placing eighth on my album of the year list. Now, at the start of 2025, they’re already back with another full length album. Let’s see if it’s just as impressive.
I provided a lot of Eidola’s background information in my review of their 2024 album titled ‘Eviscerate’ so I’ll skip past most of it this time. Just know that their clean singer, Andrew Wells, is super impressive and recently replaced Tilian as the singer of Dance Gavin Dance. Eidola is a swancore band (named after DGD guitarist, Will Swan) so there are quite a few similarities to DGD.
Thematically, ‘Mend’ focuses on beauty, grace, forgiveness, and love. It’s the lighter counterpart to 2024’s ‘Eviscerate’ which focused on loss, grief, and despair. Eidola also injects their standard dose of philosophical and existential topics.
Unfortunately, the lighter topics and lighter album art translates to softer music. Obviously, I typically gravitate toward heavier styles, which is why I really enjoyed the infusion of heaviness on ‘Eviscerate.’ The interplay between screams and soaring choruses was so much fun. Plus, the funky swancore instrumentals brought a lot of energy. This time around, things are a bit more subdued, and you have to really enjoy the softer side of post-hardcore to make it through. I’ll give Andrew Wells credit for his singing though – he pulls off the “sexy post-hardcore” style very well.
Honestly, ‘Mend’ is what I always thought Eidola sounded like before ‘Eviscerate’ caught me by surprise with its amped up sound. That’s why I hadn’t paid much attention to them until last year. But yeah, ‘Mend’ isn’t going to be anywhere near my top 10 this year. It isn’t bad, it’s just not for me.
I’m not sure how they went from making songs like “No Weapon Formed Shall Prosper” and “Who Of You Will Persevere” to making this album. They were obviously going for a different vibe, but these songs are several steps down. Most of them are just…not as interesting. I quickly lost all curiosity when it became clear that there weren’t any surprises hiding around the corner.
Well, I guess that isn’t completely true. In a weird turn of events, the final three tracks did draw me back in a bit. This is probably the first time I’ve come across an album that’s so bottom-heavy (where the best songs are at the end).
“The Faustian Spirit” is definitely my favorite track and one of the reasons that I can’t completely write this album off. It captures the upbeat, fun attitude that made ‘Eviscerate’ so good. The final two songs also have a playful sound that I was hoping to hear more of. I feel like this bouncy, joyful style would have fit the lighter themes of this album really well, but most of the other songs are more low-key and serious.
Looking towards the future, it’s unclear what’s next for Eidola. They recently stated, “As this final chapter closes, we want to thank you for a decade of unwavering support.” Fans are split on whether this means that the story Eidola has told across their last six albums is complete, or if it means that Eidola is over. It does seem possible that Eidola could disband or at least go on hiatus while Andrew Wells focuses on DGD and the other members focus on their side projects.
In the end, Eidola is super talented, and it’s ok that I mainly connected with ‘Eviscerate.’ They’re a force in the post-hardcore / swancore genres, and I hope they continue to make music.
Eidola // Mend
Categories: Reviews
