Harboured
Location: Denver, CO
Album: Self-titled, out now via Lost Future Records
RIYL: Emotion. Loosening Up. Alternate Reality.
The first thought anyone has when hearing a side project is how much the branch will sound like the trunk. It’s only natural to want to compare what you know with what’s new, and it’s how our brains categorize things. That’s how I noticed that OAK and Gaerea, though markedly different styles, share a sense of sonic grandeur. That said, don’t go into Harboured expecting an Allegaeon clone; though they share two key members, there’s little in common at all, aside from both being broadly labeled “melodic extreme metal.” Harboured is much more aligned with post-metal and melodic black metal, feeling more in step with a tech-y Church of Ra or Wolves in the Throne Room. The key distinction lies in the clear difference in focus, as vocalist/guitarist Mike Stancel shares:
“I really wanted to make something that felt more emotional musically than previous work I had done. When we started writing these songs, I saw that there was this space available in the music that allowed for these more emotional elements and passages to exist without sounding out of place or forced. There’s a much different writing procedure for this music than other genres or styles that we’ve done with our previous bands. They might have had a more structural-based writing style, that works well for that music, but there’s a much looser sense of construction when it came to writing for Harboured. I feel like there’s an allowance of fluidity with the music and leaning into that really allowed the emotional side of the music come out.”
The result is a release that’s equal parts pummeling, harrowing, and beautiful. It’s a stunner of a debut that shows that an old dog sometimes has unexpectedly new tricks.
Photo courtesy of Harboured.
