Louisville melodic black-metal quintet Volcandra announced their arrival in style in the winter of 2020 with a striking debut, Into the Azure. Brimming with versatility and creative energy, the record blended some of the best elements of Scandinavian and American black metal with a progressive lightness of being that gave a certain radiance to their tales of epic fantasy battles. Their timing wasn’t the best, of course, but they kept their hand in the game, and later that year they gave us a holiday present in the form of a December single—a brooding cover of Opeth’s “Demon of the Fall.”
In May, Volcandra announced that they’d signed to Prosthetic Records, and in June they released a four-song EP, Border World. A lockdown baby, the EP celebrates an art form that saved many people’s sanity in those long, isolated days: video games. Opener “Tallon IV” is an homage to Metroid, and the EP’s title is inspired by Half-Life, as is its cornerstone track and first single, “Resonance Cascade.” In an interview with Echoes and Dust, front man Dave Palenske says that Volcandra want to provide an escape for fans—and here they show that the key to escapism is less about understanding what your audience is escaping from and more about what they want to escape to.
“Resonance Cascade” is a gripping quest that plunges you into the protagonist’s point of view. It features a guest solo by guitarist Mike Low of Nashville metal outfit Inferi, and its winsome guitar heroics and martial surges cascade into thrash and speed metal. “Colossi” is more harsh and raw, with respites when a fighter can catch their breath few and far between—the breakdown around the three-minute mark would be sweet if it didn’t offer false relief. “Guardian” closes out the EP on a heroic note with a beautiful guitar solo and a hopeful, aspirational vibe.
You don’t have to be a gamer (I’m not) to relate to Volcandra’s strong sense of narrative, but those who are might find this music even harder to resist—especially given the obvious joy the band took in making the video for “Resonance Cascade,” which also includes Mike Low. Volcandra did a short, scattershot U.S. tour this fall, but this will be their first Chicago show.
Volcandra Amiensus, Toxic Ruin, Pulchra Morte, and Flesher open. Fri 1/6, 8 PM, Reggies Music Joint, 2105 S. State, $15, 21+