BISMUT
Retrocausality LAY
BARE RECORDINGS
Instrumental Dutch sludge/psych trio take the long route
There are innumerable memes about bassists being redundant in metal bands, so it’s nice to hear Bismut offer a riposte. Huibert der Weduwen’s ebb and flow has a real touch of Tool’s Justin Chancellor; he’s the beating heart of the band’s second record, driving the conversation whenever it begins to linger. And linger it does. At 72 minutes, Retrocausality’s instrumental, progressive sludginess can hold onto a leitmotif too long, but when they deliver those meaty riffs on Oscuramento; when they build to that frenzied crescendo at Varasaga’s 10-minute mark; when Vergangenheit’s dizzying riffs initially unfurl, it’s spinetingling stuff. If this album was 30 minutes shorter, it would be unforgettable.