Despite Despair / Gunner
Unyoke
Self-Released
Street: 04.18
Despite Despair/Gunner = Botch + The Ghost Inside + early Pelican
Squealing guitars and gritty breakdowns dot the mathcore landscape of this local split, which showcases two bands with similar influences to create undeniably different, but thematically similar music. Despite Despair begins with “Elohim,” a short track which starts slow and somber, with twangy, dissonant grooves reminiscent of Pelican’s Australasia. After building into a rapid sonic attack, their side of the split starts picking up speed with a strong influence from the hardcore side of ’90s crossover. Gunner then takes the lead with “Atlan Quarterfold,” which varies between high-energy mathcore and somber post-hardcore passages. The melodies seem more consistent on Gunner’s half of the split, carrying through the song instead of meandering through moody post-rock ambiance. With plenty of variety in speed and style, this split goes through far more material than its modest 23-minute run time might suggest.