Systemic

Australian duo Divide and Dissolve (guitarist/saxophonist Takiaya Reed and drummer Sylvie Nehill) make instrumental music with the intention of protesting against colonialism and white supremacy, acknowledging ancestors whose land and culture were stolen, and encouraging people to fight for Black and Indigenous liberation. Their music alternates between punishingly loud, sludgy doom metal and beautifully haunting neo-classical passages, equally mesmerizing and cathartic. The duo worked with producer Ruban Nielson (Unknown Mortal Orchestra) on their third album, 2021s Gas Lit, and opened for Low on their 2022 tour, shortly before Mimi Parkers death. While Divide and Dissolve sound significantly different than Low, both groups share a similar persistence of vision and devotion to remaining hopeful in a chaotic, unjust world, and they made fitting tourmates. Systemic is Divide and Dissolves second album with Nielson, building on the foundation of the already powerful Gas Lit to create an even more resounding statement. Following "Want," a brief, intriguing intro that sounds like tape loops of a vintage organ, Reeds multi-tracked, atmospheric saxophone buffers the disarming bad-trip sludge of "Blood Quantum," providing at least a ground layer of comfort in a period of heavy anguish. "Simulacra" starts out with a righteous riff and clobbering drums, quickly piling up and getting more destructive and unhinged until everything combusts, then reaches a slow, unsuspended state that feels like dizzily floating miles above the Earths surface. "Reproach" applies a similar sort of hardcore ferocity to a funereal dirge-metal crawl. "Indignation" begins with solemn saxophones, bringing to mind Coils majestic, otherworldly darkwave moments, then crushes unbelievably hard when the guitar and drums burst in before returning the mournful orchestration to the forefront at the end. Minori Sanchiz-Fung, who has contributed poetic spoken-word text to most of Divide and Dissolves previous releases, returns on "Kingdom of Fear," a vulnerable plea for acknowledgement and acceptance. On final piece "Desire," Reeds cascading saxophone arrangements seem to transform into an entire chamber ensemble, providing a heavenly coda to an album filled with intense emotional contrasts. More dynamic and sonically defined than Divide and Dissolves earlier albums, Systemic is easily their most successful work thus far. ~ Paul Simpson