Even with a much longer than anticipated pause between albums, metallic hardcore phenoms Ithaca have managed to pick up right where the band's incendiary 2019 debut The Language Of Injury left off.
The UK outfit quickly established a creative precedent, asserting a kind of ambitious audacity that coupled confrontational ethos of hardcore with a range influences that ran the gamut. From dreary blackgaze to the wild proficiency of early prog, all presented with an authentic post-punk aesthetic, Ithaca instantly took command. Coupling style and execution, the result was a well-timed middle finger at towards the troupes of conventional heavy.
The impact of the band proved so effective that some three years later, the promise of new music has launched Ithaca right back into the conversation of heavy culture's most exciting contributors. Unveiling their Lewis Johns-aided "They Fear Us" last week, the title track of the band's sophomore release instantly substantiated Ithaca's initial hype. A brilliant meld of intricate fretwork, dynamic tempo shifts, and pummeling percussion, "They Fear Us" serves as a unique statement that puts the genre as a whole on notice.
The track is underscored by the kind of vocal performance from Djamila Boden Azzouz that reiterates real range. The vocalist fluidly shifts from melodic to menacing with the kind of composure and convincing command that proves this most certainly her element.
For the accompanying visual, the band executes a bold juxtaposition of opulence and the ominous - combining the vivid color palettes of ageless art, the depiction of avant garde cinema and even a subversive slant on religious imagery in what amounts to the band's most inventive project to date.
The band share the massive undertaking in crafting the visual companion for "They Fear Us". "Making this video was one of the hardest but most creatively fulfilling things we've ever done as a band. We shot in multiple locations over multiple days, we stripped down to our underwear, we swallowed fake blood - we put everything into it!"
The band further detail the thematic weigh of the clip. "The video is about reclaiming power - our main location was in a stately home of the British landed gentry, to create a contrast between us and the colonial imagery on the walls, representing us kicking down doors and taking up space. The visuals are influenced by experimental cinema, religious iconography and pre-Raphaelite paintings. We set this level of ambition to announce ourselves as an unapologetic, inescapable force in the heavy music scene - you will fear us."
The sophomore album They Fear Us from Ithaca arrives July 29th via Hassle Records. Pre-order the album - HERE
