When Lantlôs announced that they were dropping their fifth full length album in 2021, Wildhund, it was not the culmination of six years’ worth of waiting from Melting Sun that I had expected the band to deliver, much to my surprise. Gone are the more shoegaze-y and dreamier aspects of Melting Sun, which in itself was a major shift in sound from blackgaze to more contemporary and ethereal shoegaze. Wildhund takes yet another massive leap in sound towards a more alternative approach, minimizing the gaze in favor of simple yet effective catchiness of a more alternative metal sound. Think Witness by VOLA but without the djent, further accentuated by the fact that Markus Siegenhort’s vocals, which are present in way more proportions than their previous records here; are also extremely similar to those of VOLA frontman, Asger Mygind.
Opener and first single off Lantlôs’ newest masterpiece “Lake Fantasy” immediately lets you know that they have transitioned into an alternative sound, with melodic synths peppered throughout the song. The vocals are also present primarily in the foreground as compared to their older releases. If a decade ago, you’d have told me that this is a Lantlôs song, I wouldn’t have believed you. But up on diving deeper into it and following their overall change in sound over the past one and a half decade, it is apparent that their core sound is still present underneath the melodic guitars and harmonious vocals. The borderline dreamy guitars are a major standout, compelling you into a sopor.
Flowing into “Magnolia”, Siegenhort’s vocals are at their best they have ever been. While hardcore fans craving for their blackgaze sound would miss the screams present on their first three albums, But it is apparent that Wildhundis a beast of its own accord. “Cocoon Tree House” kicks off with mesmerizing guitars and dreamy vocals is the perfect recipe for hypnotizing my brain, highly reminiscent of Parannoul’s album (listen and read my review on it ya chum!) from earlier this year. It is astounding how Wildhund takes inspiration from some of my favorite releases and combines them into this lulling concoction to deliver banger after banger.
“Home” starts off with some delicious drumming and into the difficult to describe, mildly dreamy, highly hypnotic soundscape, providing the first taste of sparsely present growls on the album and ending on a pensive crescendo which manages to be caught and improved up on by the following song, “Vertigo”. Starting off with energetic guitars, the dreamy aspect is almost negligent here. You can tell me that this is a Katatonia song and I wouldn’t think twice about it. VOLA, Parannoul and Katatonia? My heart can’t take more of this greatness as I’m lost for words to describe the scale of what Lantlôs have managed to achieve here.
“The Bubble” continues on the energy and heavier guitar tones laid down by “Vertigo” to deliver yet another smashing masterpiece with a haunting end. However, at this point with “Amber”, I’m left brooding and missing some of the more flexibility in sound their previous records had. The songs sort of just blend in to this one big pot of vegetable soup where no vegetable overpowers the other, and hence lose their individual identity in favor of a whole. I so direly miss the rollercoaster, the decrescendos and crescendos from their older material to deliver the build ups and then demolish it. “Cloudinhaler” serves as a slower paced interlude but I can’t help but feel like it serves more as padding than anything else for it fits nowhere on Wildhund, serves no purpose to carry the album’s vivid sound, bland and directionless.
“Planetarium” is a massive wake up call to my phased-out ears, the rollercoaster ride which I was much craving for. Opening up with a slow burning, haunting fracas, it sets up the perfect tone and build up towards a dainty and eye-watering chorus. I can finally say that THIS is Lantlôs; theirown sound instead of numerous great inspirations. “Dream Machine” is the most chaotic and fast paced song off Wildhund, more in-line with the songs at the start of the album much to my dismay. I crave more of the goodies that comprised. “Planetarium”. It just ends up mushing together like mashed potatoes and drags on for a tad bit too long for its own good.
This formula continues even into the following song, “Dogs in the Wild”. I’m left looking for a whole cherry that Lantlôs dangled in front of me in my black forest cake. No matter how good the cake tastes, I yearn for that exotic fruit that I know for damned sure the band have kept tucked away. While I had my doubts about “Lich” when they released it as a single (stop releasing closers as singles for fuck’s sake), it works well in context of the album, ending it on a strong and energetic note that creatively lines up your dominos and then trips them for your enjoyment.
In spite of the numerous yet minor quips, Wildhund ends up being an extremely enjoyable listen. Never once did I feel the passing of an hour for no song is downright boring albeit lacking identity. While I am disappointed that this is what Lantlôs fans got after six years, by itself, it stands strong and one of my favorite releases from this year so far. Next time though, please use more spices for your vegetable soup and less water, make it thicker and flavorful for you do have the top-quality vegetables at your disposal already. Wildhund is out now via Prophecy Productions. You can buy it here. For all things music, make your destination BoolinTunes.
8.5/10