Monday, 28 October 2024

Салют! - Салют!


Labels: Self-ReleasedPolar Summer

Formats: Tape/Digital

Release Date: 12 Nov 2015


Tracklist:


1. Вперёд И Вверх

2. Остов

3. Шхуне И Бродягам

4. Осень

5. И Кончен Бал

6. Отражение

7. Туман


Салют! or Salute! was a very short lived screamo band from Kyiv, Ukraine. Their self-titled album was released digitally in November 2015 before being released on tape by Russian label Polar Summer just over a year later. Their name is an 'exclamation used to express friendly feelings towards one's companions before drinking'. That, as well as the bright colours used in the cover-art resonate so much right now.


Delving into Polar Summer’s back catalogue has been such an honour so far and hearing this release is no different as ‘Вперёд И Вверх’ provides such a lovely melodic emo/screamo opener. It’s very upbeat while also being cathartic. I stopped short of using the ‘emo-v’ tag here for obvious reasons. ‘Остов’ is an equally beautiful song with very thoughtful instrumentation, song-writing and vocal phrasing (even if I don’t understand Ukrainian!). Sometimes it sounds like it has a punk influence but that’s only fleeting, as it’s much more heartfelt overall.


Salute!’s emo-filled approach breaks new ground on ‘Шхуне И Бродягам’ as it’s joined by a heavier, more abrasive side. That heavier side doesn’t last too long before they retreat into a gentler mid-section that reminds me a lot of German band Duct Hearts. In typical fashion though (as I write this), the final bars do a 180 degree turn back towards that earlier mentioned heaviness. ’Осень’ makes me ponder what would have happened if Salute! had produced more than just this one recording. Back in 2015 they already exhibited how talented they were. If they had stuck it out for a bit longer I think they would have been very popular, even with listeners outside of their sub-genre. 


Of course making a statement like I just did has it’s flaws and those flaws are exposed as the dissonance of ‘И Кончен Бал’ takes over the speakers. I do love dissonance (otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this blog) but I also love melody, which Salute! have in abundance here. Penultimate song ‘Отражение’ captivates and encapsulates everything that makes this album so good. The expressive and free nature of the music really comes alive during this, it’s longest song. Even as it descends into an amalgam of noise and spoken-word samples, it leaves you transfixed.


Rounding out their self-titled album with the glorious ‘Туман’, they bring to mind many US/UK emo bands yet they exude so much of their own personality that it’s criminal to compare. Salute! have left me truly stunned and I’m sure they’ll do the same to you too. So many bands fall under the radar nowadays, especially those who have merely one demo, EP or album. While physical tape copies are pretty much impossible to obtain now, at least this album is still available digitally (until somebody, hopefully represses it).


You can stream and purchase both the original and remastered versions of this album digitally below:-



Polar Summer - https://polarxsummer.bandcamp.com

No comments:

Post a Comment