Toronto based post-metal four-piece SARIN have inked a deal with Prosthetic Records and are preparing for the release of their third full-length album, You Can’t Go Back. Coming up 3,5 years after their jaw-dropping album “Darker Lakes” on Zegema Beach Records, Dingleberry Records, Arkan Records, R.I.P. In Peace Records & Dead Punx Records, the new offering features 6 tracks that make up this emotionally charged missive are both introspective and celebratory; the perfect album to introduce SARIN’s euphoric post-metal to a wider audience, and truly put them on the heavy music map. To celebrate this transformational experience, we have teamed up with the band’s guitarist and vocalist David Wilson for a full track by track commentary, giving you some first-hand background on each and every track from “You Can’t Go Back”.
You Can’t Go Back opens with a crushing intensity that barely lets up throughout its 35 minutes of short but memorable runtime. Momentary respite thanks to gentler passages is fleeting, yet provides a dark-light balance that makes the plunge back into the visceral swirl all the more enticing. Recorded at The Sugar Shack in London, Ontario by Simon Larochette and later mastered by James Plotkin, You Can’t Go Back captures SARIN at their dynamic best.
Written in the wake of a crumbling relationship, the lyrics center on the conscious effort to change oneself; recognizing behaviours and circumstances that make joy scarce, and working to limit their hold on life. The emotionally charged origins of the album’s lyrical themes lend themselves to the tonally dense and memorable song structures that build tension throughout. The therapeutic nature of the record creates an energised and uplifting feeling, atypical for the genre.
Although You Can’t Go Back is imbued with enough silver linings to make the album an inspirational listen, the process of change – and all its agonising facets – is never far from view. The cover artwork by Eliza Xenophon, in all its vibrant glory, hints at the churning mass of feelings contained within.
You Can’t Go Back will be released via Prosthetic Records on February 5.
Sarin vocalist and guitarist David Wilson’s track by track commentary on their upcoming album, ‘You Can’t Go Back’:
Cold Open
I desperately wanted us to open the record up with what’s essentially a big rock song, and boy did I get my way. I’d been playing around with riffs that sounded to me like The Bends-era Radiohead, and got excited when I stumbled into the main melody. I thought it’d be interesting if we pushed that kind of melody through a “metal” filter, and we’re all pretty pleased with the results. Every band should be permitted one big rock song.
When You Melt
Speaking of big rock songs, I’m realizing now that I snagged this title from a Matthew Good Band lyric (more title thievery to come below). This is one of my favourites to play live, though I think I may be alone in that. It’s aggressively major in key, but just tonally abrasive enough that no one’s going to fight us over it. Vocals/lyrics only pop up at the end, but thematically it’s a song about emotional intimacy.
Reckoner
We decided a “banger” was needed to offset the overt positivity of the two previous songs, and this is where that took us. Lyrically it’s about scrambling and failing to hold onto an old identity, and the directness/bluntness of the song is meant to bludgeon you for even trying. The title is also shamelessly stolen from Radiohead. I’m still stunned that no metal band before had thought to do the same—it’s a great metal song name.
Thick Mire
Any show we’ve played over the past 2 years has ended with this song. It’s our live favourite. The eerie, skittering intro is something that changes every time we play it, which adds an element of instability. Furthermore, the point at which I have 5 seconds to detune my guitar on the spot and *pray* that I land on the correct note is invigorating. The more structured parts of the song are rhythmic and almost bouncy, and however awake or drained we’re feeling, the ending sets us on fire every time.
Otherness
A short and necessary break from loudness. I love Matt’s fingerpicking on this one: He plays through an aluminum neck guitar, and you can hear every scrape of his fingers along the fretboard. The rest of the song is an excuse for me to play that big solo at the end.
Leave Your Body
The happiest sounding song we’ve written. We really went to town with the jaunty solos on this one, and regret none of it. We have a longstanding tradition of making the last song the most positive one—however dark or melancholic the album leans, we like to bring it back around to a place that feels optimistic. Like the post-metal equivalent of a Pixar movie.
Oh, and the clean intro has flashes of Radiohead’s “15 Step” in it. The label limited me to 3 mentions of Radiohead per interview, and I intend to use all of them.
