OH HIROSHIMA - Myriad / Digipak CD

Following their latest magnum opus, Oscillation (2019), Swedish post-rock masters OH HIROSHIMA return with their fourth studio album, Myriad, slated for a release on March 4, 2022 via Napalm Records. Due to the ongoing pandemic lockdowns, the band had more time to devote to delivering an epic successor, unquestionably raising the bar and excelling with grandeur!

It’s a mixture of emotions – from infinite sadness to moments of clarity, and heart-rending melodies blending into a rumbling volcano of aesthetic noise and a ferocious power, but also the unique use of trumpets, cello and trombones throughout – that sees OH HIROSHIMA outclass and grow renowned not only in post-rock circles but beyond. Every track stands out from the others, while the band incorporates a lot more influences from different genres than they’ve done previously. Now being a duo since early 2021, after former bassist Simon Forsberg left the band, surely had a major impact on their new album‘s process but also a challenging chance to step up their songwriting game. There is still a lot of post-rock on Myriad, but it seems the brothers Jakob Hemström and Oskar Nilsson managed to kick down the creative walls of the band and made use of a much broader musical palette.

The band has always been masters of dramatic ambience, which songs such as the beautifully crafted “Humane” perfectly emphasize while gradually building into a mesmerizing track, before eventually exploding into a sonic ascension of grace and breathtaking power. The mournful key-based intro of “All Things Pass” leads into the dark and bleak facets of OH HIROSHIMA’s epic sound universe, whereas songs such as the haunting “Ascension” – with its glistening guitar lines and the otherworldly voice of Jakob Hemström – leave you lost in a sphere of sadness mixed with light and hope, matching the imposing sonic melancholy of the track and throughout the record.

Recorded by Kristian Karlsson (pg. lost, Cult Of Luna ), and once again mixed and mastered by Cult Of Luna’s Magnus Lindberg, with Myriad, OH HIROSHIMA demonstrate outstanding ability – melding captivating melody with epic, fulminating fervency, and delivering a majestic masterpiece which will undoubtedly be an early album of the year contender!

Tracklist

1. Nour
2. Veil of Certainty
3. All Things Pass
4. Ascension
5. Humane
6. Tundra
7. Hidden Chamber