ninehertz

Stormo were always a cool band to keep tabs on, but then - for me at least - that transformed into essential with the release of their last album Endocannibalismo, from a couple of years back, which arrived with a tsunami sized splash, signalling a massive leap in their evolution. Now returning on Prosthetic Records, it's clear Stormo have matured to transcend the genres they grew up in.

You hear it even in the first seconds of first track proper Sabbia, a confidence in their screamo, blackened hardcore hybrid sounds. Maybe its my imagination, but there seems to be a drop in the aggression levels from before, even if just by a single degree. They carry themselves with an assuredness, existing in the same livewire spaces as Birds in Row. Kallitype is a perfect example - as the track builds it has an increasing emotional charge that's difficult not to get caught up in.

As that flows into Sciame, you know this is something special, once again, in the upper reaches of the harsh-end screamo, beauty clearly within. The album's second half has less that stand outs, and there a couple of industrial filler tracks that I'm not sure what the goal is. A couple of minor gripes then, that stop this being absolutely stellar, but they're not a hinderance to diving back in, pressing play from the start once more. On the whole, this is excellent, further evidence to the growing might of Stormo.