Mountaineer - Bloodletting

Angry Metal Guy 60

Back in 2018, Mountaineer’s brave concept album Passages checked all the right boxes. The captivating mix of post-metal, doom, and shoegaze was offset just so with an alluring sense of adventure, as the band threw in some odd instruments and bleak, cathartic progression in the songs. In fact, the mighty El Cuervo claimed Passages was one of the few post-metal albums he still went back to. High praise from our deliberately contrary Brit. Now these Californians have returned with Bloodletting, which promises to present an even darker take on life. The band also returns having doubled in size since Passages, having added a bass player and two more guitar players to the mix. Can Mountaineer create less with more, or will the trio of guitarists bloat Bloodletting à la Iron Maiden?

Bloodletting is permeated by a bleak sense of loss, or perhaps of letting go. In fact, that is the loose concept of the album: casting aside that which is not needed, shedding one’s skin, and moving on without those things that drag us down. It’s a dark, bleary-eyed approach, and if not in the right mood when listening, it can be a real downer. “Blood of the Book” opens the show with a drawn-out, disconcerting intro consisting of an odd choral arrangement and gloomy guitars. Two minutes along the full band comes crashing in, and Miguel Meza’s harsh vocals enter the fray. It’s a strong opener, a showcase of the band’s strengths in a seven-minute package.

The best songs on Bloodletting strongly convey Mountaineer’s messages, providing healthy doses of relief, loss, and resignation. Album highlight “South to Infinity” is an eight-minute monster that opens with an actual riff, a ponderous rhythm, and monstrous harsh vocals. At times clean guitars add additional melodies, juxtaposing the heaviness of the rhythm. The harshness fades from view after a couple of minutes, and slowly the song dwindles down to just lightly-picked guitar. The back half of the song is emotionally charged, introducing new guitar lines that weave hypnotically about is, showcasing the band’s shoegaze side. “Shot Through with Sunlight” opens in pure doom fashion with a sad guitar, but an intriguing percussion/guitar rhythm hooks us in. It doesn’t take long for the band to move into Neurosis territory, albeit slightly more delicate, and the shifts in dynamic from shoegaze to post-metal and back lure me in for repeated listens.

Meza is Mountaineer’s strength, effortlessly shifting from dreamy shoegaze vocals to emotionally-laden harshness. He succeeds in dragging us along on the band’s journey, as he did on Passages. As for the new pair of guitarists, I don’t discern any tangible change in style or songwriting. Perhaps they offer the band additional live resources; on tape, though, nothing of note. And once again, the mix and master is claustrophobic, a wall of sound that still manages to sound powerful despite the lowly DR rating.¹ Unfortunately, the band can’t maintain this morose momentum from start to finish. “To Those We’ve Left Behind” drags far too long before taking off. “Apart” is the penultimate track, and is just a short shoegaze diversion. Bonus track “Still” adds nothing new or different.

Bloodletting is as bleak and cathartic as Mountaineer hoped for. While as a whole it fails to capture the magic of Passages, tracks such as “South to Infinity” and “Shot Through with Sunlight” display some progression in the band’s sound. These tracks are amongst the best the band has written to date, showcasing a wealth of emotion and talent. The album may fall slightly short of its predecessor due to a couple of weaker tracks, but is still a worthy addition to the band’s catalog. Fans of depressing post-doom should pay attention.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 4 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Lifeforce Records
Websites: mountaineerlfr.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/mountaineerbayarea
Releases Worldwide: May 22nd, 2020

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