A Heavy Rock Album from Hathors

A massive new album release from Hathors has dropped, and this thing is invitingly invasive, if that's even a thing. The songs are drenched in elements of post-rock, grunge, a little hint of hardcore, progressive rock, and this sort of 90s underground alternative rock soundscape that always shows face and with such a beautiful slew of influences, the record gives me little bouts of nostalgia here and there, but ultimately lets me feed off the sonic drive that the whole thing delivers.

When The Sun Is Out (When The Skies Are Grey) is a record that holds very little back in the way of letting the band's presence push the envelope. These songs sound almost like they were recorded live on the floor, and everyone involved was just feeding off of each other's energies the entire time.

It's very few and far between that you hear a record and immediately know that you want to see this band perform live in your face.

Let's start with the first track, "A Land of Dust And Stones", which is a song that even gives hints of post-punk, especially in some of the introductory guitar work. The song has a huge, vastness in its undertone, letting it feel sort of progressively cinematic, but the whole thing really packs a punch at the same time.

Listening to this track is like watching a scene of a film. It sticks with you in a strange way and has a slight haunt to it that I soaked in.

Now, this is a pretty good track to introduce the record with simply because it does boast some of the staples you'll hear through the rest of the album; however, this is a record that you should listen to all the way through, in one shot.

The reason for that is that there are some stories told here, and at times, it feels almost like a concept album.

There are strange connective aspects between certain tracks, and the whole thing has plenty of surprises around the corners, so you don't want to miss a lot.

Tracks like "Then Thousand Days", which is hands down one of my favorites, really push that punk and grunge envelope with a grittier tone, and I love how come at times, the bass guitar and guitar tones can change from song to song. It doesn't happen all the time, but when they're aiming towards a grungier field, the distortion changes ever so slightly.

Of course, I wasn't there for the recording, so I could be wrong about that. It could just be how my ears are picking it up for heavier tracks.

But the whole record is heavy. It's melodically heavy, though. It even beckons little bits of shoegaze as well.

There are loads of styles and approaches throughout the course of this album, and listening to it all the way through is like an escape. Really, it's like an experience.

This is a unique album that was meant to be listened to from start to finish.

Songs like "Dreaming All Day Long", have unique guitar tones and approaches that, to me, feel kind of like post-punk and even post-rock at the same time. It's heavy and sort of thrashy, but they do it in a particular way so that it's not overwhelming and not ultra heavy.

The vocals balance this threshold a lot as well. The vocal approach across this record is pretty brilliant, honestly. It has an aggressive tonality but a radio friendliness at the same time.

It feels like alternative rock style vocals, but also edges on hardcore. It's got that heavier undertone. There is a slight grit in the underbelly of the vocal approach that makes things a little harder hitting.

This was just a massive record. This is an album for those who love heavy music. It doesn't have to be hardcore, metal, alternative rock, or any particular heavy genre; it just has to be heavy rock.

I find it refreshing that the band was able to put together something that has that balance of unique approaches, styles, and blends genres like that so easily.

The whole thing is seamless, has a forward-moving flow, but feels like a sucker punch to the gut when it's all over.

After listening to the album all the way through, you have to reacclimate yourself to whatever you were doing again.

This is what I mean by an escape. It provides a heavy rock escape, and I feel like we all need that from time to time.

Hell, I need that every day, but I don't always get it. I thank Hathors for delivering such a killer and gigantic, sonically driving, and perfectly edgy album, which I was able to get engulfed by. Straight up. 

You should try it too. Just start from the very first track and go all the way through because it's just satiating.

It's a very satisfying rock record. And again, there's something that gives me those little bouts of nostalgia along the way. It reminds me of a bunch of bands I grew up listening to, so you can hear those influences throughout, but they also bring a fresh spin.

I love this.

Definitely take a deep dive into this album, turn it up, and remember where you heard it first.

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