So the release of the Montreal post metal unit BIG|BRAVE’s eighth album ‘A Chaos Of Flowers’ is arcing steadily towards a conclusion (out 19th April via Thrill Jockey Records). This is a band whose momentum is grounded in consideration and integrity, no quick wins, no sell-outs, who’ve evolved their own unique approach to slow core, electric rock over the last decade. Robin Wattie (vocals/guitar), Mathieu Ball (guitars) and Tasy Hudson (drums) may have initially laid down the BIG|BRAVE foundations of elemental riffs, pounding rhythms and the searing thrill of Wattie’s vocal but from here they have always been about emotional and sonic extension.
Their collaboration with The Body on 2021’s ‘Leaving None But Small Birds’ saw them dive into the dark narrative and distant melodies from folk tradition while last year’s ‘nature morte’ marked their cathartic anguish reaching a musical peak. So where they will take ‘A Chaos Of Flowers’ is a burning question.
A glimpse of an answer came with last month’s first single i felt a funeral, an immense folkloric ballad unwinding like a ritual procession and craning with blues distortion. Now a further prequel to the album’s release comes with the ethereal, almost mystic beauty of canon: in canon. Wattie’s singular voice is fragile but determined, aching out each word while the echoing chords of Ball plus guest guitarist Marisa Anderson roll and rumble. There is a spaciousness here, a stark but stoic minimalism with Tasy Hudson’s cymbals restrained to a soft beaten whisper.
Deeper than chilling but poetic in movement, ‘A Chaos Of Flowers’ looks set to be further proof that BIG|BRAVE can navigate the most difficult spaces for us.
Pre-order your copy of ‘A Chaos Of Flowers’ by BIG|BRAVE from your local record store or direct from Thrill Jockey HERE
BIG|BRAVE will be touring the EU and UK this spring at :
May 3 – Duisburg, DE – Stapeltor
May 4 – Brussels, BE – Les Nuits Botanique
May 5 – Paris, FR – Pointe Ephemere
May 6 – Bern, CH – Dachstock
May 7 – Schorndorf, DE – Club Manufaktur
May 8 – Graz, AT – Orpheum Extra
May 9 – Budapest, HU – Durer Kert
May 10 – Wien, AT – Chelsea
May 11 – Krakow, PL – Kamienna12
May 12 – Warsaw, PL – Hydrozagadka
May 14 – Prague Bike, CZ – Jesus
May 15 – Berlin, DE – Kantine am Berghain
May 16 – Aarhus, DK – VoxHall
May 17 – Sonderborg, DK – Mejeriet
May 18 – Copenhagen DK – A Colossal Weekend
May 20 – Den Haag, NL – Paard
May 21 – Antwerp, BE – Bouckenborgh
May 22 – Ramsgate, UK – Ramsgate Music Hall
May 23 – Brighton, UK – The Green Door Store
May 24 – Bristol, UK – Dareshack
May 25 – Leeds, UK – The Lending Room
May 25 – London, UK – Portals Festival
