EP: Cold Sanctuary // ARTIST: Mirrors
There's heavy music and then there's HEAVY music, and Victorian hardcore quartet Mirrors defiantly leap into the latter category with their viciously visceral EP 'Cold Sanctuary' due out this Friday.
With 'Cold Sanctuary' marking their second EP since unleashing their debut 'Fool's Paradise' in 2017, Regional Victorian natives Mirrors very swiftly established themselves as a dominant force in the heavy realm early on, playing alongside Parkway Drive, Architects and more at the iconic Unify festival a mere 12 months after coming into musical existence. And while starting out on an undeniably strong note, the sophomore outing for the Mirrors lads is one of dynamic anarchy and significant finesse that paints them as an intriguing force to be reckoned with.
Lurching out instantly with the djent-ish 'Damien', there's an early established breathless chaos threaded throughout the five tracks on 'Cold Sanctuary'. Lyrical angst and churning arrangements battle out before a moment of soft respite peters into 'Stain The Page', hurling you back into pounding rhythms, booming basslines and rasping vocals. 'Can You Hear The Silence' treads along metalcore-meets-djent territories, with razor-sharp guitars, growling vox and pummeling beats eventually giving way to the lighter and slightly brighter title track.
COLD SANCTUARY (MIRRORS)
Melodics notably peek through in greater numbers throughout lead single and titular tune 'Cold Sanctuary', with smooth synths underlying the roaring breakdowns, before closing track 'The Puppet Strings Are Broken' runs riot with fiendish riffs and shivering pauses that hurls everything the Mirrors gents have into the mix before closing with a shattering hush.
Lyrically and sonically probing into the the tumultuous inner-workings of the mind, 'Cold Sanctuary' astutely rages and recedes with its turbulent chasms reprieved on occasion by ambient, calming sanctums. And behind the barbed brutality that comes hand-in-hand with the hardcore label, there's also fearless candor throughout the EP coupled with some sparkling composition and top-notch production. Overall, Mirrors have harnessed a calming and controlled malice with 'Cold Sanctuary' that howls, roars and ultimately finds an unlikely sanctuary in its own chaos, and it's a bold and purgative ride.
'COLD SANCTUARY' OFFICIALLY UNVEILS THIS FRIDAY MAY 10TH. FOR PRE-ORDERS AND ALL OTHER MIRRORS INFO, HEAD HERE.
BY TIANA SPETER