MENORAH HAVE THAT “TURN IT UP AGAIN” KIND OF GUITAR SOUND

Menorah lean into blown-out guitars, front-and-center vocals and slow-burning tension without sanding off the rough edges.

This was my first time hearing Menorah, and the guitars were immediately what pulled me in. There’s a thick, fuzzy distortion here, but the riffs don’t just sit there as noise. They keep moving the songs forward. The vocals are pushed right to the front too, so even when the guitars get big, Jacob Parker’s delivery still cuts through. That mix was already a big part of Sycascend, where the band uses the four tracks almost like a mini lesson in dynamics. “Bug” hits quickly, “Make Like Fog” pulls everything down into a slower ballad space, “Bricked Up” stretches the tension, and “Wicked Sycamore” ends with a much more explosive release.

On Azteca, “Dredge” is the one that really stuck with me. It runs 5:34, but the band doesn’t treat that length like an excuse to pile on sections. The song has this heavy, dragging pulse while the distorted guitars stay warm and ugly around the vocal. It feels restless rather than simply slow.

I can hear the ’90s influence, especially in the vocal character and guitar sound, but I like that Menorah aren’t polishing it into retro cosplay. There’s still some dirt in the edges. That’s exactly what makes me want to play this again.

...

• AGREE!
• DISAGREE!

(•)> That's all, Folks! Check it out on the Pigeon Opinion Playlist