Collapse under the Empire - Shoulders and Giants

  by Andy Cassidy

published: 11 / 10 / 2011

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'Shoulders and Giants' is the first of a two part instrumental concept piece by Hamburg duo Collapse Under the Empire. The album is described as dealing with themes of human existence, the dream of advancement, freedom, isolation and death. The first two tracks, 'Shoulders' and 'Giants', utilise distorted guitars and atmospheric synth textures to construct a cinematic mood – the music is wide open and expansive, with layer upon layer of hypnotic, near-drone sounds. For me, the album truly begins with 'There’s No Sky', a mellow and trippy three note sequence which blossoms into an overwhelming rush of glorious sound on the three minute mark. There’s a patience to the arrangements, which is particularly evident here. It is, to a lesser degree, present throughout the album, and it benefits the compositions; all the individual layers are given space to breath and seemingly expand to engulf the listener in wave upon wave of sound. In the absence of lyrics, I found it difficult to connect with some of the supposed themes of the music, but the intended sense of isolation becomes abundantly clear with 'The Sky is the Limit'. Quite simply, it is a lovely piece of music with a guitar introduction which is the very sound of yearning itself. My main criticism of the album, however, is that, to the casual listener, there is little to tell the individual tracks apart. With the exceptions of 'There’s No Sky' and 'The Sky is the Limit', both of which are outstanding, I felt that the musical themes were repeated and recycled throughout the course of the album, with echoes of Sigur Ros and Mogwai throughout the set (anyone who enjoyed 'Takk' will adore this album), and a true sense of isolation inherent in the music as a whole. This is perfect soundtrack material, but while the material is original and of a high standard, I feel that the individual tracks may benefit from having more emphasis placed on their own unique melodies. The second part of the work, 'Sacrifice and Isolation', is due to be released next year, and I’m keen to hear it. I suspect that hearing 'Shoulders and Giants' in context as part of a greater whole will increase the pleasure one derives from it. 'Shoulders and Giants' is not a flawless album, but it is atmospheric and enjoyable. There is definitely a place in the “instrumentals” section of my collection for it, and a space has already been reserved for part two.

Track Listing:-

1 Shoulders
2 Giants
3 There's No Sky
4 The Last Reminder
5 The Sky Is The Limit
6 Disclosure
7 After The Thaw
8 Days Of Freezing
9 Incident
10 A Riot Of Emotion

Band Links:-

http://collapseundertheempire.com/
https://www.facebook.com/collapseundertheempire
https://www.youtube.com/user/collapseempire
https://plus.google.com/101657591862875561084
http://www.last.fm/de/music/Collapse+Under+the+Empire

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