NOTE: I originally wrote this review in 2021 when ‘Infinite Granite’ came out, but I never posted it. Since we’re on the topic of Deafheaven, and I reference ‘Infinite Granite’ in the main review, I figured this is as good a time as any to finally get this review out there.
I’ve always been drawn to Deafheaven’s music. They were one of the bands that introduced me to post-black metal and each of their albums offers a different flavor of emotional intensity.
But to be honest, ‘Infinite Granite’ isn’t for me. The band has almost completely abandoned the black metal influences that used to be the core of their sound and the end result is an album that I would never touch if it weren’t for the Deafheaven name.
The loss of intensity, blast beats, and crescendos…I can only view it as a huge step backwards. It’s as if they flattened their sound, like they took out a dimension. There’s simply less range. Fewer possibilities. The missing intensity, the absence of that push and pull, it has resulted in an album that is devoid of the suspense and drama of their previous work.
The band has been focusing more on their shoegaze sound in recent albums, but the abandonment of their black metal elements was unexpected, especially after they released “Black Brick,” one of the heaviest songs they’ve ever made, in 2019.
If you’re into dreamy melodies and ethereal singing, you’ll like this album a lot. The most direct comparison I can make to another band I’m familiar with is Astronoid. And I guess I’ll backtrack a little bit and acknowledge that there are a few short bursts of intensity scattered throughout the album and the final song is a legitimately heavy closer. But it’s not comparable to what Deafheaven embodied up until this point. If that intensity is what you’re listening for, it’s not worth the time it takes to get to it.
Deafheaven // Infinite Granite
Categories: Reviews
