Descensus

Personnel: Steven Choi (guitar).
Audio Mixers: Will Yip; Japhil Nicolo.
Recording information: Studio 4, Conshohocken, PA.
Philadelphia-area sonic warriors Circa Survive continued to warp their post-hardcore sound into more progressive and experimental territory on fifth album Descensus. They wander between all-out assaults of chaotic, orchestrated fury (especially notable on furious album-opener "Schema") and the more restrained, sometimes psychedelic tones the band explored on 2012's Violent Waves. As with that album, Circa Survive worked again with producer Will Yip (known for his work with artists ranging from the Disco Biscuits to King Sunny Ade), for the first time writing the bulk of the material in the studio instead of their usual process of writing, demoing, and obsessive refinement before entering the studio. ~ Fred Thomas