as absolutely slay as de cinque is with shorter hair i think i prefer him with longer hair. or at least younger him with long hair. idk his short hair seems much better in the primal sinister video. i still love him and the rest of the band regardless of how they look how they cut their hair or how they wear their makeup
First Temple is the 2009 debut album of Aussie five-piece prog rock powerhouse Closure in Moscow, and a stunning introduction to their avant-garde sound, remaining untouched to this day. Produced by the titanic label Equal Vision Records (formerly Polyphia, Pierce The Veil, etc.) there was an expectation to uphold the standard set by their previous EP (self-proclaimed albumette,) The Penance and The Patience.
Closure in Moscow went to great lengths to pump out an equally impressive album, with a wide range of tracks and atmospheres. Their follow-up album Pink Lemonade is a far cry from the grounded surrealism of First Temple, but you can feel the trails their freshman release patted down first. They've got another one coming out October 25th, so keep your eyes peeled for that review when it comes out.
Track-by-track below the cut.
TRACK 1 - KIssing Cousins
No, I didn't mess up with the shift key, that's how it's stylized. The mix on this track feels a little too subdued, with the vocals and the instruments occupying the exact same space. It creates a crowded effect for the listening experience, in a way that detracts a little too much from the stellar performances on both ends. The background vocals come through way in the back, but that does come with a more surreal feel to it.
I'd like this a lot more if it was mixed better. 6/10
TRACK 2 - Reindeer Age
The tone is immediately different. The guitar has a curious synthetic twanging to it in the verses that still persists in the back of the mix during the chorus, making way for an incredibly fast-paced guitar. To this day, Reindeer Age remains the fastest track in their discography. Verse and chorus switch back and forth almost too fast to keep track of in a frantic crystallization of the experimental and esoteric sound of First Temple.
8/10, pay attention to the drums when you listen. They're definitely a highlight.
TRACK 3 - Sweet#hart
I really couldn't tell you why this is stylized the way it is. The lyrics are a vivid portrait of a very specific state of mind that's a little too complicated to convey in semi-formal prose. The chorus is incredibly strong, maybe the strongest on the album (or in their discography?) without detracting from the poignant verses. (I feel like I need to use that word more here.) The contrast between the instrumentation between the verses and the chorus is really something special.
Just as fun from start to finish. 10/10
TRACK 4 - Vanguard
This is First Temple's most traditional presentation of rock in its instruments and vocals, but most outlandish lyrics. Frontman Chris de Cinque has described Vanguard as "entirely too obtuse [...] an exercise in thesaurus masturbation," and I'm not inclined to disagree. I know with full confidence, however, that nobody is here for the lyrics. Vanguard has soaring guitar riffs from start to finish, and a palpable energy that permeates every line delivery.
Really, really cool. 9/10
TRACK 5 - A Night At The Spleen
Vanguard might have been a ten if it wasn't in between Sweet#hart and this. I can't in good faith count them as cut from the same cloth. A Night At The Spleen is a honeyed experience, wrought with thrumming riffs, cheeky soloes, and the timeless classic "boomer bend." There's an infectious energy running through it, even infused in the quiet tension of the bridge. Not even the silence is free of it; every rest feels like an intentional build to what comes next.
Perfect energy, a masterclass in momentum. 10/10
TRACK 6 - I'm A Ghost of Twilight
Again, the questionable mix rears it's head. The instruments and the vocals occupy the same space, and it takes away from both. That being said, this is a better execution than in Track 1, as it gives a little more room for de Cinque's more powerful vocals to make their own space. This has possibly the most decipherable lyrics o
n the album, and I'm thankful for it. I'm A Ghost of Twilight builds a powerful atmosphere in both it's sound and lyrics, with both augmenting each other.
It would've been easy to give these lyrics a slower, sadder song, but this was the better choice for sure. 8/10.
TRACK 7 - Permafrost
It wouldn't be a prog rock album without a couple very experimental tracks. Permafrost lives up to its name, with a cold and impenetrable haze over the mix. The lyrics are pretty grim, and de Cinque has gone on record calling it a separation for the two more distinct "acts" of the record. Allegedly super drunk recording the vocals, which I could probably guess.
5/10.
TRACK 8 - Deluge
Very refreshing, coming out of Permafrost. The mix is clear and properly arranged, with the vocals in front of the instruments and very clean layering. The pre-chorus belt is a great touch, especially next to the more delicate delivery on the chorus itself. Deluge is a lot of moving parts, and it would be lesser without any single one of them. The chorus lyrics are really profound (dare I say poignant?) and contrast with the more whimsical delivery. Closure's always been good at mixing whimsy with melancholy.
8/10.
TRACK 9 - Afterbirth
I really couldn't tell you what's going on with the instruments here. Logically, I know what I'm listening to is a guitar, but something about the tuning and key of it make it feel alien. de Cinque cites game show music as his inspiration for it sonically, and I can definitely see it. This is maybe the least decipherable the album has been so far, but "the hour of my echo is at hand" is a badass line. There's so much going on here, and I appreciate the cacophony.
The guitar in the back of the bridge is way too cool to be that quiet. 7/10.
TRACK 10 - Arecibo Message
Oh, good, the lyrics got even less decipherable! The sound is full and developed, with a completeness to it that says I don't really mind not being able to understand the lyrics. This is probably the most "First Temple" song on here, with a huge range of sounds and feelings behind it. As the last real rock song on the album, it's a fitting dismissal of the second "act" and a comfortable transition into the "epilogue." The chorus is a blast.
The key change into the last chorus really makes it. 8/10
TRACK 11 - Couldn't Let You Love Me
The acoustic shift here doesn't make this song any less full. Every inch of the mix feels occupied by something that needs to be there, and the steady guitar is very welcome. I'm impressed by the ability to set a bassline off an almost pizzicato-esque acoustic guitar.
6/10, still a fan though. Anything above a 5 isn't a bad song!
TRACK 12 - Had To Put It In The Soil
Had To Put It In The Soil is the most intimate and bare song on the album, lyrically. First Temple has been full of fits of real emotion obscured by cryptic and overcomplex lyrics, and our final track is the conscious effort to face that habit and push through it. It's really beautiful, surprisingly serious, exceedingly mature and most of all just poignant.
9/10, doesn't sound too stellar but it's really pretty.
RETROSPECTIVE
First Temple is an avant-garde exploration of a lot of complicated feelings and dynamics, in a generally energetic and digestible package. It's one of the prime examples I use for prog as a genre, with an incredibly forward-thinking style and range of sounds. Every track on the record feels like it fits the name of the genre perfectly, as a progression and test to the limits of what we understand as rock. The separation between the two distinct "acts" is a really nice touch, too.
i am so in my closure in moscow era of fangirling again
understand that it is only going to last two weeks at most before i move on to another band no there is nothing u can do about it hehe X3
i am literally shakinfg i cannot contain myself they are back again
I DIDNT KNOW THERE WAS A WHOLE ALBUM COMING OUT ALONGISDE BETTER WAY CLOSURE IN MOSCOW IS BACK AGAIN AND CHRISTOPHER DE CINQUE GOT A HAIRCUT AFTER NINE YEARS
oh and the video is by FAYE FADEM, former drummer of thank you scientist (she did the touring after the release of stranger heads prevail and the drums on terraformer) and local trans icon
you guys have no idea how much i need to scream right now this is way better than any durgs
jus
ajasdhjdghjgdhlkdwwopiavma ipo
