GOD IS AN ASTRONAUT - Origins

Whoever said 2013 is a bad year for music should, among other things, listen to some more music and stop thinking only about the “classics” that have said their last words ages ago. Lo and behold, the astronauts are back with a new and awesome release called Origins. Lucky for us, Romanian audiences have had the pleasure to watch these amazing boys twice, so we realize that our universe does not revolve around metal only, as we might believe at first, but also around other sub-genres of rock music (and not only), be it even post.

At their sixth studio album, God Is An Astronaut give us the same sounds they have accustomed us to throughout their 10-year discography. And yet now we get a rather catchier post-rock, very melodic and with a lot of metallic elements. While on the previous albums we had vocal parts without lyrics (just a vocal melody run through a synthetic microphone), this time the band’s music also includes lyrics... a bit distorted, but still lyrics. Of course the old vocal parts are still with us, and they go pretty well with the rest of the instruments, especially synths, and it’s hard to tell that these sounds are made by a human voice. 

Until their previous album, Age of the Fifth Sun, the Irishmen were a successful trio, with the two Kinsella brothers - founding members, together with Lloyd Hanney - behind the drums. Now, with Origins, the band includes a new guitarist and a keyboard player, and has turned into a quintet. This change is really felt, the astronauts’ music is not as “raw” as we have felt in the past, but rather one where each member brings a clear contribution, something that the band needed, especially for a live presentation.  

I couldn’t say about Origins that it’s the band’s best album, because I find it hard to get over All Is Violent, All Is Bright (2005) or God Is An Astronaut (2008) - two records to swear by, but even so we get an exceptional material from all points of view, especially since this time it brings more new things to the band’s music. While at first the title could be seen as a bit blasphemous, I can easily say that their music is indeed godly. And who has yet to hear yet would do better to stop thinking about it, especially if they’re into instrumental, progressive, post, math or other questionable stuff like that, and they’re certain to have quite a few pleasant surprises.

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