### The Atlas Moth: A glorified piece of blue sky

#### 23/09/10 || Khlysty

I discovered The Atlas Moth through their singer’s/guitarist’s, Stavros Giannopoulos’, participation into the latest magnum opus of Twilight. Intrigued that a Greek guy (actually, Stavros is American, of Greek descent, but, hey…) would participate in such a project, I decided to check out his own band, named after this. Brrrrrrrr… Have I ever told you how much huge-ass insects freak me out? Well, they fucking do! But, does the name has anything to do with what the band seems to go after with “A Glorified…”, their first record?

Well, yes, kinda. As this huge moth exudes a sense of mystery and danger, so does its musical namesake. The Atlas Moth has been tagged as “sludge”, a characterization that I find to be totally retarded. What this band reminds me the most is a more spaced-out “Celestial”-era Isis, but without the Bostonians suffocating density and with a more psychedelic/acid rock twist to the music. You want another simile? Here goes: The Atlas Moth is like Neurosis playing slowly “Until Your Heart Stops”-period Cave In. What those two references mean, is that The Atlas Moth goes for a bizarre and mostly interesting mixture of intensity, atmospherics and melodic sensibility, although the last part of the mix is not easily discernible, as it needs to be unearthed through multiple layers of guitar and electronics noise.

The songs are lengthy and meticulously composed and performed and they generally tend to be slow in a kinda-groovy way. Electronics provide a lot of atmospherics and psychedelics to the music, while the vocals are a VERY intense mix of hardcore-ish screams and growls that contrast mightily with the melodic sense of the music, although, from time to time, we get some nice clean singing. And, probably, this is the best descriptor for The Atlas Moth’s music: contrast. Clashing influences –from Pink Floyd to Cavity- are the backbone of each song, which does not develop, but more than anything, seems to unfold like a spike-covered origami. The guitar work is exceptional, with enough depth to give the songs the gravitas they need, while there’s a lot of fantastic leadwork, that gives each song a lot of personality and detail.

Look, I won’t tire you with a lot of details. If you’re interested in a surprising mix of melodic doom/sludge, progressive rock and acid/space rock that displays depth of compositional talent and an assload of great ideas, The Atlas Moth is a band that you should check out tout de suite. If not, well, too bad for you. You’re the one who’s missing a chance of listening to some great –and heavy as all fuck- music.

- Information
- Released: 2009
- Label: Candlelight
- Website: The Atlas Moth MySpace
- Band
- Stavros Giannopoulos: vocals, guitar
- David Kush: guitar, vocals
- Alex Klein: bass, backing vocals
- Andrew Ragin: synthesizer, guitar, backing vocals
- Anthony: drums, percussion

- Tracklist
- 01. A night in Venus arms…
- 02. A glorified piece of blue sky
- 03. Grey wolves
- 04. Our sun, our savior
- 05. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence
- 06. One amongst the wheat fields
- 07. Jump room to Orion
- 08. …Leads to a lifetime on Mercury