Sertaline/The Streetlight Was All We Needed/Hypnotic Dirge Records/2021 Compilation Album Review

 

  Sertaline  has  returned  with  a  compilation  which  consists  of  their  ep's  "Shade"  "From  Both  our  hands"  and  "These  Mills  Are  Oceans"  the  last  2  which  where  reviewed  in  this  zine  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  compilation  album  "The  Streetlight  Was  All  We  Needed"  which  will  be  released  in  2021  by  Hypnotic  Dirge  Records.

 Shoegaze  influenced  guitar  solos  and  leads  start  off  the  compilation  before  adding  in  some  heavy  post  metal  style  riffing.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  also  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  vocals  are  mostly  grim  yet  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  the  riffs  also  add  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody.

  Atmospheric  elements  can  also  be  heard  quite  a  bit  throughout  the  compilation  while  a  couple  of  tracks  are  also  instrumental.  When  the  music  speeds  up  a  decent  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling  along  with  a  great  portion  of  the  tracks  also  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Throughout  the  compilation  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  along  with  some  tracks  also  utilizing  clean  playing  as  well  as  some  songs  also  adding  in  synths,  acoustic  guitars  and  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  on  a  couple  of  tracks.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  guilt,  regret,  addiction,  anxiety,  depression,  love  and  hope  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  a  very  great  sounding  collection  from  Sertaline  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric  post  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  compilation.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Shade"  "The  Knowledge  Of  Trees"  and  "Their  Cities".  8  out  of  10.

    Album teaser - Youtube

Stream - Bandcamp    

Sertraline/These Mills Are Oceans/Hypnotic Dirge Records/2019 EP Review

  Sertraline  are  a  band  from  New  York  that  has  been  featured  before  in  this  zine  and  plays  an  atmospheric  form  of  post  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2019  ep  "These  Mills  Are  Oceans"which  was  released  by Hypnotic  Dirge  Records.

  Clean  playing  starts  off  the  album  along  with  some  elements of  post  rock  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  on  the  recording  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.  The  songs  also  mix  in  some  touches  of  shoegaze  along  with  some  grim  black  metal  screams  making  their  presence  known  once  the  music  gets  heavier.

  When  guitar  solos  and  leads  are  utilized  they  are  also  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  also  adding  in a   great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  which  also  gives  the  music  more  of  a  raw  feeling. Throughout  the  recording  you  can  also  hear  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts.

  Clean  playing  also  returns  on  the  later  tracks  as  well  as  the  music  also  getting  very  atmospheric  sounding  at  times  as  well  as  most  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  all  spoken  word  parts  are  added  onto  the  closing  track.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  dark  and  emotional  themes.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Sertraline  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  atmospheric  post  black  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Their  Cities".  8  out  of  10.

  Bandcamp, Youtube,  Spotify.

  

Sertraline Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
1. We began, conceptually at least, in 2015 but didn't fill out a full lineup until 2016. I'd say we are equal parts black metal and post rock thus creating a very big and atmospheric sound. That is what we aim for anyway.

2.So far you have released 2 ep's, musically how do they both differ from each other?
2. I think the two releases are fairly similar sound wise. Shade, our debut EP, is a good introduction to our sound. I think our latest, From Both Our Hands, is ultimately an extension of that. Our next release, which will actually be coming out fairly soon, will continue to show what we are about but with a natural evolution and better songwriting which is of course what you want as a band with each respective record.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?
3. As the vocalist I write all the lyrics. I'd say, so far, it has been a mix of personal experiences as well as some storytelling. I've always taken writing very seriously and my themes are generally heavy. Some themes have been loss, grief, religion, poverty, and addiction. Though I must say within the dark subject matter there is, at times, some hope.

4.I know that the band was named after a generic name for Zoloft an anti depressant, how does this name fit in with the musical style you play?
4. Some people have been kind enough to tell us that our music can be very therapeutic and can feel like an escape while at the same time also being deemed depressing, lol. I think we are very proud with the combination of our sound and the name. It has worked out as it was intended. I myself am on that exact medication and it honestly has saved my life. So that just only adds to the profundity of everything.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new ep cover?
5. Our bassist, Jason, came across that painting while searching out some ideas. It was by a wonderful artist, John William Waterhouse, called Ophelia from 1889.

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
6. I think we've been fortunate enough to have played many great shows. I wouldn't say any in particular stand out. We did just tour and definitely had some memorable ones. We played a show in Manchester, NH on a night where just a few blocks away Trump was giving a rally speech. So that was very interesting, lol. Quebec City and Pittsburgh were fantastic and we love playing in Portland, Maine. As for stage performance, for me personally, I am very physical and "in the moment." No matter how many people are watching I give it my all. As a band, especially with music of this ilk, I think the live aspect is very important. Perhaps even more so then a recording. We need to convey the power and emotions of our sound. I'm confident that we achieve that in every show thanks to the great talent around me.

7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
7. As I said, we did just get back from a tour. We have toured a couple times now. Would love to do it again but would definitely prefer next time to have some help by a label and/or booking agency as we've done everything ourselves. It would be much less stressful, lol. We will be taking a few months off from playing live to continue writing our full length record but before that we do have a show here in Buffalo opening up for a great band, Inter Arma, on Sept. 4th.

8.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of post black metal?
8. Responses have luckily been overwhelmingly positive. I think both with touring and releasing records all you can hope for is just for more people to hear your music and in turn more people to witness it live. It's a process and we will continue it. Having Hypnotic Dirge, a label we are all big fans of, release our current EP has only helped that process along. We hope the reactions will continue to grow and be positive.

9.Are any of the band members currently involved with any other bands or musical projects these days?
9. All but our drummer came from a band called Where She Wept which was a blackened doom band that actually existed for 15 years. As for currently, yes our bassist plays in a black metal band called Enthauptung which has music out there to find. One of our guitarists, Jay, is always involved in other projects, lol. One of which is in its infancy so I don't have any details to spread at the moment. But it will sure to be released to the masses at some point.

10.When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
10. We have a couple new songs now completed, that we've actually been playing live for a bit, and then will just continue writing for the rest of the year. Always tough to predict of course but would hope to have a full length ready to go by the end of next summer. I think musically we'll just continue to evolve and really just let things develop naturally. We already love the two new songs so we are excited to continue this direction and see where it takes us.

11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
11. I think a great thing about the six of us is that we are very much on the same page when it comes to our music but we also all bring a lot of diversity influence wise to the writing process. We are of course influenced by bands within the genres of post black and post rock. But those genres are very vast and then each individual musician can bring something completely out of the box but when integrated with everyone else it ends up working. I think no matter what sub-genre or band inspires us we just want our sound to be intense, powerful, impactful, and ideally memorable. As for what I am listening to at the moment? That's tough, always listening to a lot, lol. I'd say lately though I've been on kind of a noise, atmospheric, drone-pop type of kick. Bands like Drowse, Floating Room, and Midwife.

12.What are some of your non musical interests?
12. I think a big interest, outside of music, not just for myself but a few others in the band are horror films. Been a massive fan for decades. I have a YouTube show and will be starting a podcast soon so that obsession takes up a lot of spare time.

13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
13. Just want to say thanks for the interest and thanks for the questions.

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Sertraline/From Both Our Hands/Hypnotic Dirge Records/2019 EP Review

  Sertraline  are  a  band  from  New  York  that  plays  an  atmospheric  form  of  post  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2019  ep  "From  Both  Our  Hands"  which  was  released  by  Hypnotic  Dirge  Records.

  A  very  dark  and  heavy  sound  starts  off  the  ep  while  clean  playing  can  also  be  heard  in  some  parts  of  the  music  and  they  also  bring  in  elements  of  post  rock.  All  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style.

  Vocals  are  mostly  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  while  the  music  also  brings  in  elements  of  shoegaze  at  times.  During  the  faster  sections  of  the  songs  a  great  amount  of  tremolo  picking  and  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard  which  also  gives  the  ep  more  of  a  raw  feeling  and  the  tracks  also  add  in  a  decent  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts,.

  Most  of  the  songs  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  while clean  playing  also  makes  a  return  in  certain  sections  of  the  recording  and  as  the  ep  progresses  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard  briefly.  The  production  sounds  very  professional  for  being  a  self  released  recording  while  the  lyrics  cover  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Sertraline  are  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric  post  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out t his  ep.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Entwined".  8  out  of  10.

 Youtube