SONG REVIEW: Stillnight - "Lustral"

Stillnight layer ethereal ambiance with crushing breakdowns in “Lustral”

Written by JD Walker

In the age of post-metalcore, layers will absolutely make or break your sound. With acts such as Spiritbox, Invent Animate, and Currents at the forefront of the genre, a level of ambiance is generally warranted to contrast the crushing brutality of downtuned guitars and jarring rhythms. Stillnight play into this sound perfectly with their new single “Lustral”, combining the heaviness of djent with soaring textures of delayed guitar and reverbed synth. 

The song begins with a dissonant, almost dreary soundscape before dropping into a brutal array of chugs contrasted by ethereal harmonies. The song truly leverages the ambient sound that’s been trailblazing through modern metalcore as of late, as “Lustral” creates an atmosphere that’s brutal yet beautiful. The Invent Animate-esque riffs are juxtaposed by vocals that are almost reminiscent of black metal during the verse, with vocalist Danny Sullivan showing his range by dipping into crisp-sounding clean vocals throughout the song but retaining a gritty, aggressive tone during a majority of the tune.

Stillnight are a duo hailing from the western coast of the United States. Composed of the vocalist, Sullivan, and guitarist Kody Thompson, the group are aiming to truly push the boundaries of metalcore and further explore the sound that’s taking the metal community by storm. The group has been active since 2018, having released five singles since 2019, but was largely an instrumental act until “Lustral”. 

“Lustral” has many endearing elements that make for a fun listen - the gravity of the songwriting as a whole weighs heavy while the beautiful ambiance of the layered synth and guitar textures, on top of the clean vocal sections, make for an attention-grabbing single and a new chapter for the group. As the band was strictly instrumental before the release of “Lustral”, it’s an exciting prospect to think of as this band has an entirely new and different palette to work with.