Screetus: Into The Ether

Hailing from India, Screetus (which I believe translates to a shrill voice on the air) deliver their debut full length release under the name Into The Ether. Now, don’t worry about that album title because what this outfit do doesn’t just fritter away into nothingness, instead leaving an impressive and lasting mark. For a band so fresh onto the scene it’s understandable that their influences should be worn reasonably clearly on their sleeves and Screetus are no different, Porcupine Tree, the more mellow side of Opeth and a slightly surprising dash of Tool the order of the day. The latter flavour isn’t always in evidence throughout, but there is a tendency for a number of the tracks on Into The Ether to evolve into more sprawling sounds that veer towards atmospheric math-rock after first creating a more melancholy song-based foundation.

That all said there is also much more going on here, the likes of “Alone� pushing and shoving between an almost grunge like swirl of emotions and a more rock edged progressive framework, while “Green� casts an altogether more gentle spell. The vocals of band leader Abhishek Sikdar bring an airy, if fragile edge to proceedings, and while there may be better out and out singers in the prog world, he fits these surrounds rather snugly. With Sikdar also handling guitars and synths, the rest of the band comprises Vamsi Krishna also on guitars, Arnav Sharma on bass and Vishnu Venugopal on drums and together they make for a tight, effective unit. Across the album the four-piece create interesting, at times lush and at other points, sparse soundscapes, but if I was to be a little critical, there is maybe the same slow build style on just one or two tracks too many. Personally, I would suggest that if just a couple of songs here really raced out of the blocks a little, the impact would be heightened. That said, as debuts go this is an impressive introduction and with cuts such as the meandering but still pointed “A Beckoning Pt1: Through The Mirror� and the surging “Slipstream� in their armoury, there are also undoubted hints at even better things to come.

Track Listing
1. Slipstream
2. Alone
3. Torn
4. Inverted
5. A Beckoning Pt1: Through The Mirror
6. Inflamed
7. A Beckoning Pt2: Into The Ether
8. Green
9. Circle 7
10. Quicksand

Added: February 16th 2024
Reviewer: Steven Reid
Score:
Related Link: Screetus Linktree
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Language: english

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