GKR031
DIVIDER "All Barren"
LP - $10.70 / CASSETTE - $4.10
STREET DATE: 9/23/14
All Barren is Divider’s debut full-length yet the Long Island, New York band has been making records since 2006 – a Kurt Ballou-recorded debut EP and a split with Bone Dance, among others. Through many changes in personnel, the band has persisted almost ten years, touring the nation alongside other standouts of the DIY circuit like Capsule and Khann.
The All Barren lineup consists of vocalist Chris Tzompanakis – former frontman of Skycamefalling – founder/guitarist Anthony Fusco, bassist Peter Gerontakos, and drummer Victor Mouradian.
All Barren is the sound of a band plowing forward after years of internal and external turmoil: lineup changes, lawsuits, and, most recently, the complete destruction of two band members’ homes in Hurricane Sandy.
Not unlike the relentless advance of that hurricane, All Barren is a campaign of mid-paced devastation that blankets the senses and dwarfs the will. From opener “Crow Eater” onward, this is music that barrels forth unstoppably with a life of its own, radiating power.
All Barren is best experienced as a whole – it is a new masterpiece of the post-Neurosis scene. The earliest Isis recordings are one reference point – the apocalyptic drive and white-knuckle intensity of The Red Sea, for example. Those who listen through will be rewarded with “Silently Marching,” a brilliant and surprising closer that seals the album in epic fashion and exposes the band’s true range.
TRACK LISTING:
01. Crow Eater
02. The Devouring
03. All Barren
04. Requisite
05. Empty Beds
06. Salt And Bone
07. Poisoned Arrows
08. Viscera
09. Ruin
10. Turning The Soil
11. Silently Marching
FOR FANS OF:
Isis, Neurosis, Cave In
MARKETING POINT:
- Produced by Will Yip (Circa Survive, Blacklisted) and Vince Ratti (August Burns Red, Balance and Composure)
- Mastered by Bill Henderson (Enabler, Most Precious Blood)
- Features members of Skycamefalling
- West Coast tour planned for October 2014 with Mercy Ties
- Featured on Invisible Oranges, Exlcaim Mag, and Gear Gods
PRESS QUOTES:
"Somewhere in between face-melting terror, robotic warfare and just things on fire in general."
–Alternative Press
"This band is as malicious and crushing as any other on the metal scene today... All Barren is surely one of the most auspicious debuts of the year."
–MetalSucks
"Combining the chaotic hardcore of Converge or early Cave In with a menacing and thoroughly weighty churn that recalls the likes of Neurosis or Tombs..."
–Terrorizer
"Their music pulls together different shades of darkness, its menacing slow burn drawing from bands like Neurosis and Tombs."
–Decibel
"Chaotic hardcore ragers"
–BrooklynVegan
"Like having your face pressed into a belt sander... Divider's music is grand, harsh, and angry... Fans of Neurosis, early Isis, and Tombs should perk their ears up for this album."
–Metal Injection
"Riffs with an indescribable power... A younger group could play these same songs 1,000 times and never come close to matching the emotions All Barren evokes."
–Invisible Oranges
"Stalwart carriers of the sonic battering ram... Gate-crushing tone."
–Gear Gods
"A dreary landscape of oppressing riffs and dark moody mid-tempo writing... An unending fist pounding dose of temperamental hardcore."
–New Noise
"There is an elemental fury to the music, especially in the roars of vocalist Chris Tzompanakis, which are sincerely righteous and pissed off."
–Verbicide