Capstan explores the dulcet nature of their sound while telling a compelling story about the shifts in our lives and overcoming past traumas on their new EP, nulla.
Capstan has long been a band in which their change is never something that happens in big waves, but when they do something different the impact of that change is like a subtle push of the waves against your feet, and with each push and pull of the current you feel it the water trying to carry you out to sea. Since their first album, 2015's Seasonal Depression, Capstan has taken us on their journey of experiences through subtle but impactfully dissonant shifts within their music. Capstan continues this journey with their new EP, nulla., which examines the dulcet character of their sound while also delving deeper into the emotionally hostile nature of integrating such sounds as they tell a compelling story of attempting to overcome past traumas.
nulla. is a nice little showpiece of experimentation without going off the hinges to prove a point. Capstan has always been a band that could create emotionally engaging songs with fiery bursts of energy that never felt out of place. nulla. just finetunes what Capstan has always been technically good at, further extending the melodicism and atmospheric tones to impact the backbone of the story they are trying to tell about the tremendous shifts that often happen in our lives and attempting to find the light in an otherwise dark time.
Right from the start, "Arrow" and the beautifully elegant "Bloom" demonstrate not only their lyrical storytelling abilities but also the gifted way they make the listener feel something through the atmospheric quality of their music. Speaking to the journey of learning to focus on the future, instead of the tragedies of the past, Capstan sets the tone of what will follow for the rest of the EP, which continues to transcend in not only their experimentation but the ornamented instrumental display they proceed to give us throughout.
At the heart of the EP is growth and transition at its finest, showcasing these elements technically and poetically with "Heart to Heart" and "Bête Noire." Giving the listener a fun outlook on Capstan's soundscapes and lyricism while not being afraid to flirt with a few juicy melodic technical riffs here and there, this perfectly segues into the final track, "Bête Noire." One of the most progressively heavy tracks on the album while still giving small elements of beautiful violin sections sewn in between its contentious guitar riffs and raw vocals, Capstan ends Nulla with one of their best songs on the EP.
nulla. is a nice little showpiece of experimentation without going off the hinges to prove a point. Capstan has always been a band that could create emotionally engaging songs with fiery bursts of energy that never felt out of place. nulla. just finetunes what Capstan has always been technically good at, further extending the melodicism and atmospheric tones to impact the backbone of the story they are trying to tell about the tremendous shifts that often happen in our lives and attempting to find the light in an otherwise dark time. While it seems like all is lost, and you don't forget the traumas that held you down, it's possible to find happiness. For these reasons, nulla. is a wonderful EP, that many new listeners and fans will enjoy.