It’s been a long, strange journey for Tempe, AZ’s Kardashev.  The progenitors of the “deathgaze” genre [citation needed] have been slowly and subtly grinding it out for over ten years, but it really was The Baring of Shadows, a humble EP released just barely into the pandemic, that put myself, Metal Blade Records and seemingly the world on to them. 2022’s Liminal Rites saw them capitalize on all that momentum, but then it seemed like, when the world needed them most, they disappeared.  Well, Alunea has finally found us (if you haven’t already, you’ll see what I did there in a second).

Alunea is not just the next full-length from a band on the rise, it is a continuation of the story first laid out on their EPs Progression, The Almanac and Excipio (Liminal Rite had its own self-contained story).  The characters of Sky-Brother and the mysterious being referred to as Pathfinder finally find each other (I told you) and exchange philosophical ideas about classic Kardashev themes like sorrow, hope and the future of humanity, as well as newer ideas like duty and responsibility.  Essentially, the story of Pathfinder being created by mankind to help humanity spread across the galaxy and find new worlds continues with Sky-Brother meeting him and exchanging ideas about altruism and the role of stories and language in communication.  Indeed, language and constructed languages play a huge part in the identity of Alunea.  “I’ve loved tinkering with languages since I was a little kid,” says vocalist Mark Garrett. “I’m not an expert when it comes to constructed languages…but I find language to be a really interesting aspect of humanity.”  Musically, Alunea is much more heavily rooted in the “death” part of deathgaze, with a heavier emphasis on aggression experimentation and progressive elements than ever before, and less of the “gaze” that most people associate with the project.  Kardashev play even more openly in the space of The Contortionist and Fallujah (minus a lot of the tech influences).

If you are one of the small number of people who haven’t been blown away by lead single “Reunion,” allow me to show you the perfect snapshot of what Kardashev is capable of.  Leading the charge all the way is vocalist Mark Garrett, whose chameleonic mastery of every conceivable style of vocal delivery is what makes him a star of both the metal scene and the world of YouTube vocal coaching channels.  If this isn’t your first trip to the Kardashev rodeo, you already know that Garrett’s clean vocals are truly out of this world (pun very much intended), but the work he’s been doing on his gutturals is really what stands out to me.  This album on the whole meets the mark of being much more death-metal-centric.  Guitarist Nico Mirolla has also upped his game in between things by melding the atmospheric, reverb soaked leads and clean arpeggios with some truly chugging and dexterous riffing, as evidenced in both “Reunion” and next single “Seed of the Night.”  In that respect, I don’t know that I would actually classify Alunea as being more “proggy” than anything else Kardashev have done; it’s at least *as* proggy as, say, The Almanac, and they do stretch themselves out a bit as far as ideas go, but they definitely have the good sense to avoid what I like to refer as “prog syndrome.”  They know enough to let a good idea stick around until it’s seen all the way through before moving on to something completely different.

Alunea has been pretty high up on my list of anticipated albums for this year, and I’ve gotta say: for me, it doesn’t disappoint.  This is an album to feel things to, to go on a journey with, to ask questions of and to ponder the depths of dreams and imagination to.  Perhaps that sounds silly or clichéd, but I don’t care.  Kardashev captured me a long time ago, and this is just another testament to the frontiers that death metal still can go.

— Ian

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Alunea will be available April 25 on Metal Blade Records.  For more information on Kardashev, visit their Facebook page.