GAEREA : “Coma”

After line-up changes over the past year and joining forces with new addition Sonja Schuringa, who now conquers the  cathartic spaces with her riffs, Portuguese GAEREA open a new chapter in their creative history in the form of ‘Coma’ – their fourth full-length album.
And while black metal is definitely palpable and catharsis still remains a leading silver thread in the work’s design, we definitely can’t say that GAEREA’s music is “pure black metal” or strictly follows the boundaries of any genre. What the band does is to recreate through music a set of emotions, experiences, to serve as a catalyst for a cathartic dive into the vastness and purification on a spiritual level, using the aggression of black metal and its grace as it relates to recreating the human depths and the overflowing processes within them.

With that said, “Coma” already had the makings of an interesting album, and it turned out to be one.
Opening with ethereal guitars and harmonic clean vocals, the album’s first track, ‘The Poet’s Ballet’, departs from the band’s traditional boisterous nature at its outset – offering a calm and nirvana feeling that is suddenly torn apart by furious calls, rapid blasts and stunning strings. The track has a mind-blowing rhytm, and it’s clear even here that what’s to come on the album will be far more raw and haunting than what we got to hear on ‘Mirage’ two years ago.

The album has much less deathcore elements than its predecessor (almost not perceptible), placing even more emphasis on primacy over emotion and artistic expression in the form of well-formed mostly  short but strong tracks. About the lyrics on the album – each word is a pure personal expression – each song is a poem by Guilherme Henriques and listening to the album you immediately realize that the words are not arranged simply because they sound good in individual songs, but because they are words that just must be spoken – poetry for the soul. This alone makes each song an authentic artistic expression. An expression that you are invited to become a part of for just over fifty minutes.

And while the album is compelling in its entirety, some of the tracks definitely stand out with their distinctive sound. “Suspended” opens with a gentle and then denser atmospheric instrumental that grabs the ear only to push you right into the arms of Guilherme Henriques and his traditional emotive vocals after that. Here the instrumental has (fortunately for me) more fast paced drums and atmospheric references and once again the song is interspersed with harmony vocals that recall the melancholy of some of the Lantlos’  or Vemod’s works.
“Coma”,  with the chopped vocals in the intro of the song and the industrial elements, the fast guitars and bass lines joining with the whispers and frantic calls also comes to the fore. The expression on the track is among the most palpable on the album, and while the instrumental feels a bit too polished to me and I find it a bit more beyond my personal taste, there are plenty of beautiful riffs and more powerful moments that stick in consciousness. And it may sound ironic to some of you, but “Coma” is actually a  song about rebirth and hope, where the lyrical protagonist takes a deep breath and wakes up from his coma, ready to lift his spirit to new heights. Quite in the tradition of GAEREA and their cathartic nature, I think.
Then, I must not forget to share that I was  surprised by the track “Reborn”, which starts furiously, harshly, with an extremely brutal black metal instrumental and vocals, which I haven’t heard from the band since maybe “Limbo”. Fast tremolo, furious blasts, deep emotional charge – this is a song that is definitely from  key importance to “Coma” not only lyrically, but also musically. The track also has a majestic element with chants behind the harsh vocals which only adds to the beauty of the song. In a few words, this is frankly one of the best black metal tracks I’ve heard in years, and you all know I have tons of music going through my ears on a daily basis.
A similar fierce and beautiful atmosphere awaits you in the songs “Shapeshifter”, “Unknown” and “Kingdom of Thorns”, which simply declare GAEREA as monoliths in the Portuguese and world metal scene, never ceasing to develop their arsenal of possibilities.

Therefore, it is hardly possible to not feel the splendour of  “Coma”. Cathartic emotions, sublime artistry and beautiful compositions await you in the album. This is one of the works that will slip inside of you and will take root with each subsequent listen. More raw, majestic, and with a number of embedded new ideas shining through in its sequel,  the music here is a depth you will feel ultimate pleasure to dive into.

Favorite song : “Reborn”

Band: GAEREA
Album: „Coma“
Release Date: October 25th,  2024
Label: Season of Mist
Link: https://orcd.co/gaereacoma