Respire are a band from Toronto, Ontario, Canada that plays a mixture of post black metal, hardcore and screamo and this is a review of their 2024 album "Hiraeth" which was released by Dine Alone Records.
Distorted soundscapes and nature sounds start off the album before going into a heavier direction while orchestration can also be heard at times. Vocals mix both the black metal and screamo styles together along with the faster sections of the songs also adding in a good amount of tremolo picking and blast beats.
Clear vocals are also added into certain sections of the album while the songs also add in a good mixture of slow, mid paced and fast parts. Clean playing is also added on some of the tracks along with the mid tempo sections of recording also adding in elements of post hardcore, melodies can also be heard in some of the guitar riffing.
Growls are also utilized at times and the solos and leads are also done in a very melodic style along with a couple of the tracks also being long and epic in length as well as some saxophones, stringed instruments , folk instruments and synths also being added on a few songs, one track also adds in a brief use of spoken word samples. The production sounds very professional while the lyrics cover immigration and shared humanity themes.
In my opinion Respire are a very great sounding mixture of post black metal, hardcore and screamo and if you are a fan of those musical genres, you should check out this band. RECOMMENDED TRACKS INCLUDE "Keening" "First Snow" "The Sun Sets Without Us" and "Do The Birds Still Sing?". 8 out of 10.
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