Band:	Najing
Album:	Najing
Style:	Instrumental post-metal
Release date:	April 14, 2023
A review by:	musclassia

01. Melancholia
02. Nerocolore
03. Death In Slow Motion
04. Fire Walk With Me
05. Sedna Aphelion
06. Violet

Najing is the self-titled debut effort from Italian instrumental post-metal trio Najing. Now, I’ve reviewed enough albums for Metal Storm to make my affinity for post-metal firmly evident, but, while I wouldn’t be so dismissive as to say that instrumental post-rock/metal has been ‘played out’, it has become a heavily saturated musical niche. Is there anything that Najing do to stand out from the crowd? Well, yes and no.

In the band’s biography, they list musical genres that influenced the album, as well as ‘for fans of’ recommendations. The latter contains a number of big names that will offer no real surprise; Isis, and particularly Russian Circles and Pelican, are pretty bang on the money in terms of what to expect from Najing. Perhaps they’re a bit on the heavier side than the latter two bands; initially, the gnarly drive of opening track “Melancholia” reminded me of fellow Italians When Waves Collide, whose record Chasm I covered back in 2021 for the non-metal article series, but a side-by-side comparison shows Najing to be firmly heavier. This song somewhat reminded me of Loviatar’s Lightless album in terms of heaviness and groove; it’s a cool song, but it’s also slightly unremarkable for the genre.

There are some hints of novelty on Najing, however, and to identify them, one can look at those influential genres and spot, alongside the expect post-metal and doom metal, a mention of stoner rock. I actually listened to the album before reading the biography, and had already picked this up in a couple of tracks as something that stood out. The first song in which the presence of stoner rock can be clearly heard is “Death In Slow Motion”; the doomy bass intro already hints towards it, but the ‘wah-wah’ lead guitar motif that is frequently reprised throughout the track and the fuzz to the main riffs cement it. A stoner/post-metal fusion isn’t unheard of, with Spaceslug increasingly dabbling with it on their last couple of albums, but it’s still a relatively novel and intriguing prospect.

It’s also one that’s taken further on 12-minute closer “Violet”, arguably the standout track on the record. The extended, eerie, bass-driven intro to this song, the guitar solo that emerges on top of it, the rowdy desert rock groove that comes in when the full band ups the ante: this song is rooted in stoner rock from the off, and sustains the fusion of stoner metal tones with post-metal dynamics throughout its runtime. The ending of this song rather collapses in on itself, descending into a cacophony of chaotic noise, and this segues into the other distinguishing feature of Najing: its more intense and abrasive moments. “Nerocolore” falls squarely within the instru-post realm, albeit in a brasher, more jagged form than some, and pushes its intensity to blast-beat extremes in its closing stages. “Sedna Aphelion” is a different beast, an up-tempo, dark, driving metallic force, whose Slayerish chromatic solo is an even more stark contrast to its tranquil midsection.

On the whole, there is enough about Najing to be able to identify it from a line-up of other recent instrumental post-metal releases and highlight what makes it stand out; if that’s the case, why did I end the opening paragraph with ‘yes and no’? Well, as much as Najing have the ambition to try and incorporate a few different elements into this record that aren’t frequently found in similar albums, there’s just something rather dry about the execution here that mutes the impact of these attempts at innovation. It’s one thing to be able to listen intently to an album and isolate specific influences, but it’s another thing to draw one’s attention when they’re approaching it from a less analytical mindset, and I just find the tonal kaleidoscope of Najing to be almost as monochrome as its album cover. There’s very few moments here that hook me, and without them, it’s difficult to get excited about this album.

I do generally find that instrumental-only bands struggle more with this, whether it be due to the absence of a core instrument or because of the challenges of structuring a song without vocals to shape them around, but it’s a hurdle that other instru-post bands have overcome before, and it’s one that I think Najing can overcome also. One benefit they have over some other of their competitors in accomplishing this is their interest in stoner music. The upper-tier instrumental post-rock/metal songs typically distinguish themselves based on either spellbinding delicate passages and climaxes (for example, early God Is An Astronaut) or captivating atmosphere (Year Of No Light). Looking to stoner metal bands, Najing could elevate their softer passages with some serene Elder/Weedpecker-esque psychedelia, enhance the atmosphere of their songs with Spaceslug-style melancholia, or add a droning, crushing weight to their heavier moments akin to the likes of Sleep or Yob. I’m just spitballing here, but I feel like there are the options out there to build upon a competent but ultimately slightly forgettable debut and subsequently come up with something that really grabs listeners’ attention.