Album Review: Follow the White Rabbit - 'Endorphina'

It is seldom when listening to music to be lost for words - indeed, seldom for most. Such is the nature of things. However, Follow the White Rabbit have done just that.

I happened across the band through the wonders of the Internet, as you do, hearing them often coined as a post-hardcore or mathcore band.

Though the band's own description was far more colourful - (If anyone remembers Alexisonfire's Myspace back in the day, this would be familiar) - I had no idea how to classify them. At the end of the day, you can't.

'Endorphina' clocks in at over an hour - to be expected with such a band. But, it's perhaps one of the most musically diverse and thrilling hours you'll dedicate. The band is immensely progressive - not only in the technical sense, but also in the diversity of their sound.

A handful of bands come to mind, but the "For Fans of" box was simply not long enough. Within the course of one of their longer songs (7-8 minutes), the band will recall The Mars Volta, Thursday, Karnivool, Tool and Mike Patton-era Dillinger Escape Plan. It's a rollercoaster ride, but it's an enjoyable one. It was quite a shock, as one usually expects any band categorised with the "core" suffix to retain a theme throughout an album with little variation, save for the token ballad or two. 

The usual procedure involves writing a little about each track, or isolating the highlights and lowlights of the album, but it flows with such fluidity that without watching the tracks change, you'd be mistaken for thinking three had gone by in the course of one song.

Progressive, experimental, atmospheric - but most of all. Good. Really good.

It's rare that an album takes you like this. The sheer amound of variation done not only congruously, but skillfully throughout this album defies any other advice to a prospective listener other than "Listen for yourself,". And with that, listen for yourself, and you'll be doing yourself a favour.

1. The Eye Light 

2. Few Stories Of A Deserted Forest 

3. Fakeface 

4. Fakeface: The End 

5. All Night And Day 

6. Panic Attacks 

7. The Great Worm 

8. War Song 

9. Zzz(Zzz) 

10. Endorphinia