Hailing from Santiago, Chile, Post-Black Metal outfit LASCAR is really a one-man solo project, composed by the hands and voice of Gabriel Hugo. Formed in 2014, "Saudade" is his second full-length album, which contains four songs...at lengths of ten minutes, nine minutes, eight minutes and a 14 minute closer. Lyrically, the themes deal with nature and mysticism. Post-Black Metal is something fairly new and ever expansive these days...I've discovered some real gems in this genre in the last few years so if it is not something you are familiar with, I highly recommend you remedy that. Let's get to the album. "Tender Glow" is the first song. After some soft guitar chords, the main riff hits at around the one-minute mark. Moderate and passive at first, inconsolable screams rise above the melancholy instruments. As the drums pick up pace, the sound then drops off around the half way mark. The ambient passage that follows really has that Shoegaze sound that gives you pause to think, as the lyrics go "echoes of lost dreams trespassing the ethereal...seasons of purple blossoms falling through the hands of time...ornaments of ice melts...through the cracks of crystal moments in a hyperbole."

"Thin Air" is faster and heavier from the start, as doleful woe is in the air. Oppressive vocal screams are accompanied by alluring musical themes, like fallen leaves on the graves of loved ones, as winter's chill settles in. Another ambient passage allows the howl of the wind to blow through you, as the final push towards the end is strong and tumultuous. The crescendo is really quite stunning. The instruments build in layers, like waves gaining energy as they crash over the shore. "Uneven Alignment" opens with soft clean guitar notes and a lamenting lead guitar, gently singing. The long vocal wails return shortly thereafter, at an absolutely crushing intensity level. Going back to the beginning in a reprisal of sorts, the clean passage returns. Distorted guitars pick up the remainder of the song. It is here where you can really feel the impact of the chord structures...melancholy, sad, and painful, yet striking.

The 14 minute opus "Bereavement" closes the album, with a very fitting title. The cold but insightful lyrics sum up the feeling..."we rise and fall until we collapse...and all that's left is an absent stare." The song takes on a journey through some of the stages of bereavement...most notably anger and despair. Anger is fueled from the vocals, and depression from the melancholy feeling of the clean instrumentation. It's a lengthy dirge that allows the grey haze of nothingness to seep in deep. According to Wikipedia a "saudade" is "a feeling of longing, melancholy, or nostalgia that is supposedly characteristic of the Portuguese or Brazilian temperament." With that in mind, the album title "Saudade" accurately fits that description very well. The composer does a nice job of mixing in many emotional elements into the album, and that is the key for your personal connection with the themes, both musically and lyrically. A little vocal variation however may have helped diversify some of the tracks. As there are only four, the tempo and structures can run together a bit. Still, fans of the style will surely find this to their liking.