Cease Upon the Capitol

untitled (2007) (2007)

Brendan

Cease Upon the Capitol has always been a class act. Their early releases had a sound comparable to La Quiete, Daitro and other European bands. However, on this album they blend this influence with post-rock and are able to set themselves apart from the rest of the screamo scene.

Track 1 opens with a delayed guitar setting the tone before the whole band comes in together on track 2 with tremolo picked octaves and frantic drums. The third track is the first to contain any vocals, and opens up with the line: "Seraphim, sing us back to sleep." Lyrically, this album is beyond amazing with each member contributing lyrics and vocals to the EP, giving it several different feels. The guitar work really shines through here, flawlessly transitioning from soft-picking parts to effect-laden chaos. That is not to say that the bass (which sometimes is tastefully distorted) and the drums do not assist things at all. The drummer actually has a number of truly creative parts, which help make sense out of the parts where a great deal is going on. The last track is the kind of song that successfully wraps up the whole EP and ties all of the songs together to make it an album and not just a collection of songs.

This 10-song EP is the kind of release you know will be an important one even before you have listened to the whole album. If CUTC continue to write albums like this, it will not be too long before they become as revered in the emotional hardcore scene as City of Caterpillar.