April Rain began in 2012 as a one-man band in Krasnodon, Ukraine and its first tunes were composed under the influence of Sigur Ros. In 2013, the first album “Waiting For Sunrise” was released. At that time, April Rain was still a one-man band. In 2014, however, the group went through major changes and three more musicians became its vital part, playing on various gigs in Lugansk. At this time April Rain is 4-piece band situated in Saint-Petersburg. Music of April Rain is pain converted to sounds.
Melodic and spaced-out guitars, bass sometimes on its own, the bringing together of a furious medley of guitars and drums. As other instrumental bands will do, they choose to use strong poetic song titles similar to those of Explosions in the Sky or Mogwai. Terry Fox Will Run Forever or Teach Me to Fly Don’t Teach Me To Land evoke so much by their titles alone that we kind of get into the song before we’ve started listening. When our attention is on an album, we find ourselves trying to find connections between the music and the song title.
By the end of the album, the impression I had at the very beginning was confirmed. This is, along with Spurv’s Skarntyde, the best instrumental rock album of the year and one of the best albums of 2015. Some moments are better than others, (Violent Passion Surrogate or Terry Fox Will Run Forever are two big highlights) but there is a remarkable coherence in the effort, talent, energy and emotion through the entire album. If you’re one of those people claiming that post-rock is dead or lacks originality, this is one album to prove you wrong.
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