Giant Squid - Cenotes
Translation Loss Records
Sludgy Prog Metal
5 songs (35:04)
Release year: 2011
Official Website, Translation Loss Records
Reviewed by Khelek

Giant Squid have been gaining some widespread attention over the past few years as experimental sludge, prog, and other borderline genres have taken off. As a fan of most sludge and its more experimental/progressive offshoots, I had to hear the latest from these guys. The well-done The Ichthyologist definitely caught my attention in 2009, which showed a progression from their previous album Metridium Fields. Fortunately Cenotes picks up pretty much where Ichthyologist left off. What is presented here is very unique and original, yet it is blended into an album that flows very well into a journey that embodies both the calm of the sea and the struggle of the creatures that live there.

The first track Tongue Stones starts off with middle-eastern inspired sounds and calm vocals. The heavy guitars break in after a short while, creating a sludgy atmosphere with some rougher vocals. The song does a great job of providing contrast between the calm and heavier sounding parts, but also flows very nicely; the transitions are never jolting. This is the longest song on the album, and an excellent take on the Giant Squid sound. Heavy, rolling guitar and bass, unique vocals, and the use of other instruments all contribute to make an epic track. However, there is still much more to come. Snakehead uses quick drums and clean guitars to create more of a folky atmosphere along with some cello to flesh it out more. The combination of the male and female vocals works quite well here. There are some electric guitars used later on, but for the most part this is more of a proggy folk track than sludge (but make no mistake, by the end of the song you will have gone through a whole spectrum of sounds). I am noticing that the vocals of guitarist and founder Aaron Gregory are lower and rougher for the most part on this album, so those who were annoyed by his higher-pitched vocals in the previous albums may like this better. Figura Serpentinata uses drums even more centrally with a rhythmic atmosphere to start off with, accentuated by heavy guitars and the ever-present cello of Jackie Perez Gratz. Her vocals also fit very well with the deep cello and guitar notes. The song is surprisingly short, but creates a very dense atmosphere.

For the most part, Cenotes is a bit more structured than the previous Giant Squid albums. The song structures themselves still shy away from typical verse-chorus-bridge arrangements, yet at the same time they flow very well. There was never any confusion for me where one song ends and another begins, because each song has a distinct character even though the entire album has a relatively consistent sound. The cello definitely plays a central role in tying the songs together, as does the relatively slow, atmospheric nature of most of the songs. Some may question whether this can really count as a full album, as it is quite short, but that is definitely part of what makes it so listenable. I am sure many will be left wanting more, as I was, but at the same time this is an album that is complex enough to make repeated listens very enjoyable. Another excellent effort from this talented group.

Killing Songs :
Tongue Stones (Megaptera megachasmacarcharias), Snakehead (Channidae erectus), Figura Serpentinata (Pycnopodia sapien)
Khelek quoted 86 / 100
Other albums by Giant Squid that we have reviewed:
Giant Squid - Minoans reviewed by Alex and quoted 90 / 100
Giant Squid - Metridium Fields reviewed by Khelek and quoted 77 / 100
Giant Squid - The Ichthyologist reviewed by Charles and quoted 90 / 100
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