“Everything went black when the sun fell.”
I feel older and older every time I tell this story, but Thrice are one of the bands that I have loved dearly since I was a child. Being the youngest of three brothers who all grew up deeply connected to music, I was sat down by my eldest brother when I was aged say, nine or ten. With his Sony Walkman, my brother introduced me to the likes of Enter Shikari, Senses Fail, NOFX, and of course, Thrice. Taking place towards the end of the 2000s, this awakening of-sorts occurred around the time that Thrice were transitioning from a sound they shared with the likes of Refused to something that was far more experimental, touching upon ambient electronics, atmospheric rock and even folk. Ever since that day, Thrice have been a band I have thoroughly enjoyed experiencing the development of, and I’m truly delighted to report that Horizons / East is yet another incredible escapade into Thrice’s unique spin on modern rock.
“Color of the Sky” opens Horizons / East with jittery, stirring synths that evoke trepidation and tension, capturing the essence of what it is like to craft compositions in a highly-disruptive pandemic. There is a lingering anxiety that afflicts those releasing in the best of times, let alone bands that face the very real prospect of having their tours cancelled due to Covid. Dustin Kensrue’s lyrics reflect upon an internal calling towards exploration, which could be interpreted as navigating today’s world, a place so alien yet so familiar — “But I know that I belong out here / On this journey that I never thought I’d make / Setting out across a new frontier, a new horizon…”.
Lead single and second track “Scavengers” proves to have been an excellent single choice in the sonic context of Horizons / East — “Scavengers” possesses one of Thrice’s most infectious choruses in recent years and appreciably holds up when compared to its accompanying songs.
“Buried in the Sun” conjures imagery of a post-apocalyptic army matching into war underneath a crimson, orange and violet sunset through overdriven bass-lines and impactful, boomy drums. If you enjoyed Thrice’s 2016 album To Be Everywhere Is To Be Nowhere, you will feel right at home here. This tracks puts one in the mind of Rise Against with its confrontational atmosphere and sociopolitical lyrics — “Blood red / Black gold / This is the air we breathe / The beachhead / The backroad / Buried in the Sun”.
Fourth on the tracklist, “Northern Lights” elicits much of that somnolent aura that was awash over The Alchemy Index, particularly Vols. III & IV: Air & Earth. Playing around with some truly intriguing jazz-fusion styles, “Northern Lights” commendably explores new territory, all whilst retaining those key Thrice elements — a chorus that rivals the likes of Muse, intensely juicy bass tones and an exotic intermixture of guitars, drums and keys.
Fifth track and personal favourite “Summer Set Fire to the Rain” embodies everything I love about Thrice. The punchy post-hardcore drums, super-memorable choruses, and energetic guitars all entwine within an incredibly pleasant mix in which everything has its rightful place and purpose. Thrice masterfully manufacture a moody yet mesmerising atmosphere across the bridge of “Summer Set Fire to the Rain”; over the top of stringy guitar plucks and melancholy bass notes, Kensrue delicately sings — “How long / How long holding true? How long / How long until the bloom?”. This song is just utterly enticing, and I can’t get enough of it.
Sans all of the dreamscape-y reverb one would expect from such a genre, Thrice tastefully incorporate slow-paced shoegaze-influenced passages in sixth song, “Still Life”. Teranishi’s guitar riffs and dissonant background leads summon serious Deftones vibes, applaudably. Particularly in its instrumentation, “Still Life” has a tangible post-rock feel throughout both its calm and stormy sections, yet remains distinctly Thrice. This track is yet another major highlight for me personally.
“The Dreamer”, meanwhile,is a weird one in the most positive of ways. This song contains chordal changes that definitely lack predictability, whilst Kensrue utilises both gritty spoken-word performances and his signature emotive baritone clean vocals.
The closing trilogy of tracks is perhaps the most unusual segment of Horizons / East. Eighth track and oddly-named second single “Robot Soft Exorcism” toys with the relatively unorthodox 7/8 time signature, generating an uncommon offbeat groove that flows through the track like a meandering river. With pulsating synths, fuzzy guitars and the initially-delicate drums that blossom later in the song, “Robot Soft Exorcism” has a definite Radiohead vibe to it, which may not be for everyone, but my word this song is up my street.
Song nine “Dandelion Wine” immediately transported me to a dusky American highway with its bluesy cymbal patterns and Kensrue’s country-esque vocals, but not before the energy is thoroughly ramped up into something much more sinister two-thirds of the way in. “Dandelion Wine” ends up being a surprisingly heavy hitter, an incredibly welcome surprise so late into the record.
Horizons / East concludes with the equally haunting and enchanting “Unitive / East”, which is characterised by a disjointed, dream-like piano piece. The only way I can describe this is that the piano acts almost like a wind-chime, with disconnected but nonetheless melodious and poignant harmonics ringing out into the void. “Unitive / East”, whilst not the soaring singalong closer that Palms’ “Beyond The Pines” was, still serves as a respectable ending, albeit one that leaves me desiring just a little more.
Ultimately, Horizons / East is abundantly heavy, but not in your typical sense. The shifting atmospheres across all ten tracks all share common elements of emotional burdens, unanswered questions and a nuance that can be individually unlocked and interpreted by each listener. Whilst my unbreakable emotional ties to the likes of Vheissu, The Alchemy Index and Palms may prevent me from definitively labelling Horizons / East as my all-time favourite Thrice record, it is most certainly a commendable and courageous effort. Perhaps my only real gripe with Horizons / East is admittedly a selfish one — I just want more of it.
Horizons / East will be released digitally via Epitaph Records on September 17th 2021, followed by a physical release on October 8th 2021. For more on Thrice and music in general, make Boolin Tunes your go-to.
9/10