With a new album titled Death and a video for a song called “Lay Waste,” you couldn’t be faulted for thinking Coastlands were an aggressive, extreme band. Rather, the Portland quartet specialize in cinematic, instrumental post-rock and post-metal that burns slowly, leading to intense and heavy crescendos.
The song is a churning, melodic track that builds from an anxious, mid-paced opening to a frantic peak and subsequent comedown. Mixed by Kurt Ballou (Converge) and mastered Cult of Luna guitarist Magnus Lindberg (Refused, Brutus, Russian Circles), “Lay Waste” has a full and organic sound; each note rings out and each instrument is balanced.
“‘Lay Waste’ is about those turning point moments where you realize that despite your current circumstances, you can see a clear path to change,” Coastlands explain. “This song is about destroying yourself first(internal conflicts) and moving outward to more physically harmful and poisonous relationships. Sometimes, in order to truly move on you must burn bridges.”
Further underscoring Death‘s cinematic elements is the video for “Lay Waste,” which could be a scene from an adventure or horror movie. See it below; Death is real on October 9 via Translation Loss in the US and Dunk! in Europe.
