Polish instrumental post-rock quintet Yenisei is set to release their third album, “Home,” on October 25, 2024. Known for their atmospheric compositions and intricate soundscapes, the Kraków-based band embarks on a bold journey that blends their signature sound with diverse genres, pushing the boundaries of their identity.
Written and recorded in the aftermath of the pandemic, “Home” represents a significant evolution for Yenisei. The album delves into new territories, incorporating elements of shoegaze, alternative rock, and synthpop, all while maintaining the post-rock foundation that fans have come to appreciate.
The inclusion of guest vocals by Maciej Kowalski of .WAVs on the track “Insecure” marks a first for the band, adding a fresh dimension to their predominantly instrumental repertoire.
“Home” is an elegant yet energetic album that avoids the pitfalls of excessive ambient overindulgence. Its mature production and thoughtful construction make it a treat for fans of post-rock and spacey progressive rock. For those of you equipped with quality headphones or sound systems, the album promises an immersive odyssey for the senses.
The band offered us a track-by-track commentary, providing insights into the creative process behind each song, as well as their favorite albums from 2024, highlighting influences that have shaped “Home”. You can find it below.
Yenisei plans to promote “Home” online and through two release shows, aiming to increase their live appearances in 2024. The band remains steadfast in their commitment to evolving their music, stating, “We didn’t want to create another ‘Reflections‘ album but to move further with our musical evolution and incorporate new elements into our songs.”
“HOME” track by track:
A Walk In The Sky
The only track on the record that comes from “Reflections” writing session, when the main melody came out. It was written in a moment when tracklist was already closed, so we decided to leave that demo for the future. We always felt that it has this “God is an astronaut” kind of vibe and we don’t hide that they are one of our inspirations, as they produce outstanding melodies. Guitars at the end of the track are adding a bit of a fresh, alternative vibe to our sound. It’s a great opener and a good bridge between “Reflections” and “Home”.
Crickets
First of the surprises on our new album, containing a lot of shoegaze’y guitars and synths. In case of sound it’s like a romance of Deftones and Slowdive in one song. We considered that it might be good for a vocal feature, but we decided eventually to leave it as instrumental. “Crickets” has a very chill section in the middle of the song, which always reminded us of a feeling of relaxation and composure during warm summer evening with crickets sounds in the background. This is where the title comes from as well as the sample in the song’s intro.
This Place Was A Shelter
Another surprise on the record. First single and track with very synth based foundations. Written mainly by our keyboardist in lower key than most of our songs. Main inspiration in the creation process was Cult of Luna as we wanted to create some dark, dirty and thick atmosphere, but it turned out to be something that we called a hybrid of Rammstein and Depeche Mode. Main theme of the track is a sad but real truth that we, humanity destroyed the world we are living in.
We Are Saved
Initially called “Mantra” as the main guitar part was repeating in a way it gave us such an idea for the title. It’s quite a complex song with time signature change in the middle. It combines vibes from a lot of our previous songs like “Bitter Cold”, “Aftermath” or “Kursk” and was a bit inspired by one of our favourite bands Alcest. Final part of the song is one of the heaviest things ever written by Yenisei with downtuned guitars and huge guitar riff.
Insecure
It was the second song written for “Home” (first one didn’t end up on the album). Contains a bit of first exploration of new sounds. Guitars are playing a lot of alternative and shoegaze parts with chorus effects. Middle of the song has a very surprising minor to major shift. We played this song live in 2023 and we felt that it is kind of repetitive for us as creators. It also has a more traditional song structure which gave us an idea of trying to add guest vocals to fill the element that the song was missing. Maciej from band .Wavs prepared vocal melodies which we fell in love from the very beginning and without them “Insecure” seems incomplete for us. We know that we are exploring totally new oceans with that song.
Forgotten
Album’s final act, which is one of the strongest points on the album. Song came from the main guitar riff around which all other elements were added. We experimented this time with vocoder melodies and higher key for the song. Ambient drone this time was not played by keys but by the guitar. It contains rhythmic pauses, guitar tremolo in the middle and epic lead part at the end. Definitely highlight for all hardcore post rock lovers. Speech sample at the end summarizes album theme and message.
