(Andy Synn catches up with a band we’ve featured a lot of over the years)
With so much music being released all the time, by both new bands and old ones, it’s all too easy to lose track of even your favourite artists.
Case in point, has it really been nine years since the most recentl album from Boston-based Post-Rock-influenced, Shoegaze-inspired Alt-Metallers Junius?
Well, apparently it has (not counting an interim Live Album from 2024), and while nine years definitely isn’t the longest gap between albums I’ve ever heard of (I’m still waiting patiently for that new Anata album) it’s definitely enough time that you might be wondering if the band have still “got it”.
So, let’s fine out, shall we?
Those of you who were/are already familiar with the group will be pleased to know that on Sotera (stylised, slightly incorrectly, as “SΩTΣRA“) most of the same sonic touchstones – think latter-day Isis and Deftones at their gaze-iest blended with a hefty helping of influence and inspiration from the likes of The Smiths and Joy Division – are still very much present and correct, with the moody, Metroid-esque synths, tightly-wound guitars, and crisp, crooning vocals of opener “Disciple” serving as a near-perfect reintroduction (or just a plain old introduction if this is your first time) to the band’s signature sound.
At its best this sound – as exemplified by the colossal cosmic pulse and throb of “Summon Her” – continues to be all about the compelling contrast between densely-layered metallic distortion and richly-layered atmospheric ambience, ebbing and flowing back and forth between these two extremes in a dynamic display of both contemplation and catharsis.
Sure, not every track rises to the same stellar heights which characterised their outstanding early work – both “Darkwater” and “Lucifera” fall somewhat short of the exceptionally high bar established by both their career-defining 2009 debut, The Martyrdom of a Catastrophist and its arguably even better follow-up Reports from the Threshold of Death, though not for want of trying – but the album as a whole is a more than worthy addition to their discoraphy that focuses more on refinement than reinvention.
That being said, stand-out cuts like “The Oracle” and impressively intense closer “Scythian” do showcase a noticeably heavier and/or darker feel – which shouldn’t be a huge shock if you’re familiar with the trajectory of their most recent work(s) – with a chunkier, more substantial guitar presence (not surprising considering they’re now rocking a three guitar line-up) and more prominent use of competing clean/harsh vocals (with the dominant cleans also adopting a slightly more dour and depressive tone), while still maintaining the same grasp of intelligent melodic/metallic/atmospheric layering which has always been the band’s forte.
The group do still have a few surprises up their sleeves of course (the riveting power of “Serpent” provides the basis for some unexpectedly menacing spoken-word samples whose provenance I’d love to know, while the aforementioned “Scythian” allows drummer Dana Filloon a rare chance to properly cut loose behind the kit, even dipping into some strikingly effective blastbeats right at the end) but Sotera is ultimately less about the band “making a comeback” and more about making it feel like they never left in the first place.