Harakiri for the Sky - Arson


Harakiri for the Sky arose from Austria amid the impending upsurge of blackgaze in the U.S., of which Deafheaven’s Sunbather became the tipping point. They didn’t add tremendously much to the newly open and young subgenre, but their compositional chops are probably a good level or two above the average blackgaze/post-metal enthusiasts sprouting from Wolves in the Throne Room’s fertilized turds (sorry for that image). Check out “Viaticum” from Harakiri for the Sky’s previous album for some very post-metal-y feels. They aren’t the most consistently compelling song-writers, but they’re certainly more consistent than the genre’s Shasta Cola: Ghost Bath (who I just realized probably have an album on the way this year or soon after), and Ghost Bath has blown up way more than deserved for a band like them, so I’m glad Harakiri for the Sky is getting some traction in the blackgaze “scene” if you will. I’ll end my shitting on Ghost Bath here; I don’t hate them. I fairly liked Moonlover, I just really didn’t like it’s redundant, drawn-out follow-up last year.
Anyway, Harakiri for the Sky have struck early this year with Arson, but unfortunately, they’ve not done anything all that different from what their previous three albums brought to the table, often grasping desperately at the vitality they had on their debut. “You Are the Scars” brings a few moments of euphoria and the closing track is a weird call-to-arms-y breath of fresh air just for its feature of female vocals, but the band’s writing for the most part throughout Arson is too unoriginal and not enthralling enough to justify the huge 71-minute runtime. In fact, it’s hard to even justify getting super deep into the track listing as the album is a spilled trash can of typical, unsuccessfully ethereal, Deadspace-esque, tremolo-picked riffs, clean guitar sections that even Ghost Bath might scrap for their blandness. Even the well-transitioned loud/soft dynamics are ripped out of Alcest’s playbook and executed with what seems like little to no vigor.
It’s overall just such a dry release from a band that I was expecting to further improve their craft and expand their sound rather than continue to harp on their past releases and the same obvious influences.

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