Hailing from Japan, Birushanah work somewhere between doom and post-hardcore, using a guitar / voice / drums framework augmented by trash percussion sounds. They spin song lengths out to a dizzying extent and somehow intermingle a recognisably traditional, tribal bent to the melodies and progressions without sounding like complete and utter novelty prog nonsense. A unique, special band.

Echoes And Dust
Birushanah are a Japanese band who play music that has elements of epic doom, post-hardcore, frenzied grind, some out there jazz elements and a whole lot of other things all mixed up in their varied sound. Makyo is the sound of a band making noise on their own terms and doing it with a mixture of style and disorder. Opening track ‘Barasayomoto’ begins with a a lengthy intro blend of traditional Far Eastern percussion, with an ominous drumbeat creating a steady but menacing beat before the track steps up with the addition of guitars and a more intense percussive beat and both still carry on that menacing beat. This is all the calm before the storm though as ‘Barasayomoto’ explodes from then on into an unpredictable and intense joyous dirge, huge guitar riffs rain down over tribal percussion so heavy it’s like listening to a more unhinged version of the mighty Neurosis times albeit with some truly off the wall vocal stylings and these stylings just add perfectly to the musical chaos and do so all through the album. It is this direct opposition of the wildly unpredictable and the steadily epic that makes Makyo such a unique and enjoyable album as Birushanah prove throughout the entire duration that it is best to expect the unexpected and let the pandemonium engulf your ears. There are only five songs on the album, but not one is under ten minutes long allowing each track to sprawl massively, unleashing different aural pleasures and the unpredictability reigns supreme on all five. ‘Sharin’ for example manoeuvres between sludgey riffs, subtle tribal rhythms, aggressive grind and an outro that would make Einsturzende Neubaten proud (the intro of closing track ‘Kagami’ is also similar to something the German industrial pioneers would put out as well), with consummate ease throughout, while the percussive and dark surf guitars that mix on the hypnotising ‘Hoshiboshi No Nagori’ explode into a post-hardcore inspired meltdown of a track. This is an album of contrasts, but these contrasts work well to create what is basically a wall of sound and shows the unique nature of Birushanah’s music. There is melody, but this is enhanced by the aggressiveness and heaviness on show (just check out ‘Kagami’ for some monolithic and doom laden heavy riffs akin to Eyehategod or Grief) and there are plenty of twists and turns to uncover. The uniqueness of the band and their unholy sound makes for both an intensely interesting and enjoyable listening experience.