Naiad

The print of a nautical star on Naiad’s disc couldn’t be any more appropriate considering their frequent visits to the musical heavens. The album starts out with very soft and spacious sounds reminiscent of a hospital gift shop nature cassette. Hardcore Emotion is also a suitable album title as Naiad has recorded a 20-minute journey into many places most bands don’t choose to tread. The distant, supple sounds of various notes slowly erode into an increasingly chaotic screaming marathon. Pushing, yet harmonious chords dabbled with subtle guitar tags eventually melt into a condescending group vocal. From this point they explore an unconventional, high pitch breed of Japa-ninja mosh, without the karaoke lyrics. The music is simple yet intricate in many delicate ways that most bands cannot achieve. They don’t kill parts by repeating them endlessly but instead keep a fresh twist for every song. The quiet moments are frequent while the guttural screeching is just as common. A minor problem is the occasionally overwhelming volume of the previously mentioned, tasteful group vocals. Naiad executes every idea impeccably, sustaining equilibrium. It’s as if Shai Hulud visited Japan, ditched Melt Banana after absorbing some pandemonium and started writing tunes with Envy, creating a piece of work that is extremely adventurous.