Ashes Against the Grain

I have been listening to a lot of frenetic music lately--music that tries to demand my attention--and when I return from that to Agalloch, I feel a sense of relief. Agalloch isn't in a rush to get anywhere. Agalloch doesn't want to slap me in the face and force me to pay attention. This music trusts that it can earn my attention by unfolding at a natural pace.

In the four years between The Mantle and Ashes Against the Grain, Agalloch made a shift from folk to art rock. The folk influences are still here: Agalloch's muse is nature and our place within it. But the music has a cleanness and tightness that feels new. My favorite track, "Falling Snow," is built around some precise guitar work that would have felt out of place on The Mantle. Previously, it felt like Agalloch might have been recording in a field; now they just sing about fields.

I think that this transition suits the band well. Ashes Against the Grain feels like a more musically mature, sophisticated work. I would have considered giving it an even higher score, but the ending didn't work for me. The last track in particular, in which Agalloch tries their hand at atonal ambient music, is a mystifying miscalculation. Despite its rawness, The Mantle felt like a complete album: it fit together nicely end-to-end and created a compelling mood. Ashes Against the Grain doesn't fit together quite as well; I find myself attracted to individual tracks, but not quite the album as a whole. So I think it's appropriate that both works end up with the same score.