Band:	Allochiria
Album:	Commotion
Style:	Post-metal, Atmospheric sludge metal
Release date:	April 23, 2023
A review by:	nikarg

01. We Have Nothing
02. 9
03. Still Life
04. Shedding Character
05. Ocean
06. Interlude
07. Casualties
08. Turning Point
09. Darklight

‘Allochiria’ is a medical condition, in which sensation is felt at a different point on the body from the one that is stimulated. Allochiria’s Commotion is a post-metal album that uses different tactics and stimulates in a somewhat different way than albums of the style usually do.

Allochiria started way back in 2008, and released their self-titled EP in 2010, but the real deal happened when Irene joined the band in 2011. Her unsettling deep growls and piercing blackened shrieks are filled with passion and angst, and they have a subtle hardcore feel to them. With her, Allochiria released Omonoia in 2014, Throes in 2017, and now Commotion, which is, in my opinion, their best album yet.

Post-metal is famous (or infamous, depending on how you look at it) for very slow progressions and bands that take way too much time to get to the point. Here, what happens is completely the opposite, and this is the most meaty and primitive output of Allochiria’s career. Influences such as Isis, Neurosis, Cult Of Luna, and Russian Circles remain, but I also hear quite a bit of Gojira and some Converge on Commotion.

While I immensely enjoy the longer, brooding songs of the band’s past, such as “Archetypal Attraction To Circular Things” or “Cracking Fractals”, this different approach surprised me pleasantly. Featuring nine tracks and clocking in at under 38 minutes, this is way too direct for post-metal standards. Tracks like “Still Life” (my favourite) and “Ocean” have intense vocals and crushing riffs right from the start. In fact, except for “Shedding Character”, which has a beautiful, mellow, and shoegazey introductory theme (that later takes turns with some sludgy doom parts), pretty much every song opens by kicking down the door, without any atmosphere-building or any time-wasting. And it is not like Allochiria cannot write long songs any more; “Casualties” proves that, and the atmospheric passage in its middle is one of the album’s highlights. But it is clear that they decided to move on toward another direction, where the post-sludge element is still very much accounted for, but there is also emphasis on the post-black features (check out “Darklight”), and the band goes for instant impact. Irene’s vocals have more presence than ever before, and, compared to the releases before it, Commotion is heavier, darker, and more aggressive; more in-your-face, so to speak. It’s like having your gut punched continuously, while the person punching you also screams inside your ear, until your gut turns blue and your head explodes.

The lyrics deal with social and psychological matters, and, while Allochiria isn’t a political band per se, they do have a certain attitude and stance towards society and people, and this is why they are equally comfortable playing live at a big stage, as well as at a DIY space or at a solidarity event to support a rape victim with their legal expenses (where there is no income for the band, solely donations for the person in need).

I am not the biggest post-metal fan, yet this album captured my attention from the first listen, and I found myself playing it way more than I expected, which is why I decided to write this review. And the most fitting way to wrap it up is with a couple of lines from a well-known Richard Feynman interview, an excerpt of which is heard on the song “Turning Point”:

“And when you explain a why, you have to be in some framework that you allow something to be true.
Otherwise, you’re perpetually asking why.”