It’s the dawn of the final day at ArcTanGent Festival and PX3 openers As Living Arrows more than amplify the relative gloom shared by one and all. Despite this being their second set ever performed, the Brighton post-screamo collective are simply phenomenal, with the delicate and pliable riffs that bind their output buckling under the screeched vocals that drive their pain-stricken work. Cuts from their recent debut In The Absence Of sound brilliant amongst the morning mist yet it’s performance of ‘As Sunflowers Rise’ that solidifies this band’s finesse. A heartbreaking ode written in memory to a dearly missed late friend, the tenderly performed track only highlights the genuine aching, pain and human emotion that lies at the crux of this extremely promising band.
Noizze

In the Absence Of is a powder keg, exploding with pensive dynamics. “Shell that Echoes Only” is a true ride, featuring a winding little progression that eventually gives way to impassioned screams just as you begin to wonder if it’s an instrumental project. Something about the rawness of everything took me back to the broken heart that lives at the core of so many bands, whether or not they sound like Senza or As Living Arrows. You might not call it pleasurable, but you can’t help but call it real, and sometimes that’s more important – especially in genres like hardcore and emo.

“That Part of Wonder That Is Mine” is another standout, discordant yet uplifting instrumental and heavy post-breakdown vocals. You can find this chemistry all over the record, but overall, it’s closer “Mono No Aware” that stuck with us the most. Wagstaff’s spoken word passages are varied throughout the record, but seem most effectively, even effortlessly delivered here. If you’re looking for something raw, powerful, and heartbreaking, give In the Absence Of a try. It’s a real throwback to early 2000’s screamo, and you don’t have to lie to us: we know you’re always looking for those.
Fecking Bahamas