By any measure, this is uncompromising fare, but expertly delivered. Working without a bass guitarist hasn't impeded this English unit from filling "Carmilla (Marcilla)" with a thunderous foundation. The guitars and drumming never completely coalesce around a sharply defined riff. Not all is chaos however. While the song never attempts obeying strict rules of song craft, it has a clear, if flexible, structure. The guitars and drums alike drop strains of color into the mix through creative fills, extended sustain, and an array of string bends. The clean vocals possess a slightly shrill, maniacal edge appropriate for the song's taut, understated lyrics.
The title track, "Spectral Visions", has a much more clearly defined riff than the first track and a stronger cinematic presentation. It is easy to admire their focus - many young bands overload compositions believing more is more, but the best bands, regardless of genre, are rigorous self-editors who pare tracks down to whatever strengthens a song and delivers it with maximum immediacy. Moss escapes the mishmash of dross and excellence weighing down many promising outfits by embracing this principle. The lyrics veer more into well-worn cliché than the opening song, but capably conjure the aforementioned cosmic dread the band aims for.
This is promising group that will likely grow and refine their approach in short order, though these songs solidify a template going forward from here. Highly recommended.
Moss @ Facebook
Words: J. Hillenburg