Every so often, we’re given a name that doesn’t just defy expectations, but rarely goes against convention in such a form that is nigh on compelling right from the beginning. While we can argue what bands are doing that magic in their own respective styles, there are always a few that manage to rise above and ascertain a level of excellence that few others can ever hope to even touch. In the last few years, Gaerea has attained that very high status in the underground with their craft only becoming more nuanced and multi-dimensional with the passage of time. Now, with the arrival of their fourth album, Gaerea undergoes an undeniable evolution that they’ve been building towards since day one.

While always making sure that their foundations were well and clearly within the realms of black metal, Gaerea has constantly and consistently extrapolated their sound to become something more. Oftentimes incorporating other styles into their own sounds to make for a concoction that has tons of weight and power and never once found itself taking the easy path in any form, what makes us think that Gaerea’s sound would never evolve to become more than what it already was? Magnificence never stays still for long, and “Coma” is proof of that in an aural state. Tapping into their more post-metal tendencies and lighter atmospheres, Gaerea delivers a monolithic and transformative experience that is the culmination of what they’ve been true masters of for years now with every single one of these ten tracks nuanced, winding paths that take us through themes of salvation, pain, despair, release, and more. Constantly writhing in the most primal catharsis that leaves nothing on the table with the very soul of Gaerea poured into every given moment of the record, “Coma” is a simply wild creation that only its predecessors can hold a candle to with Gaerea’s reputation not just being cemented as a result, but elevated to another level altogether. Blurring the lines between genres simply wasn’t enough anymore for Gaerea. They brought together every given facet of their sound to bring forth a display that’s deeply evocative, harrowing in its intensity, and pure mastery from top to bottom. Loaded with contrast and persistent in its high-level splendor that cannot be likened to much else out there, “Coma” is a textbook example of extreme art unbound.

Where many in the underground seek to toil and become something in their own right, extremely few are able to ascertain even a fraction of what Gaerea has done in only eight years. Time has been a boon to the suffering of Gaerea, and “Coma” is another certifiable peak for a band that has more than earned the right to be titled one of the absolute need-to-know acts in all of the metal landscape as we know it today.

“Coma” releases on October 25th via Season of Mist!

LISTEN to singles from “Coma” on Bandcamp here.

LIKE Gaerea on Facebook here.