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04/18/24 | [dcraley]Review: Stormo - Endocannibalismo
| Album Title | Endocannibalismo |
| Released On | Prosthetic Records |
| Date | 02/10/2023 |
Call a band screamo and it causes a natural aversion. Label that same band post-hardcore and they will be respectfully assessed. I’m speaking for myself, but I know I’m not the only one.
STORMO is a post-hardcore group from the Dolomite Alps region of Italy, that might be a screamo band. I’m splitting too many hairs for a bald guy, but the former is a broad genre, and the latter is more specific. Formed in 2007, this quartet is more intense and frenetic than any band that comes to mind from the aforementioned subgenres. On their fourth studio album and Prosthetic Records debut, Endocannibalismo, Stormo spill their collective guts in an eleven-track cacophony of their most realized form yet.
“Valichi, Oltre” is the retch that kicks off the record. Pop a Dramamine if you’re susceptible to motion sickness because the delicate syncopated rhythm of the track might make your head spin. The unhinged drumming of Stefano Rutolini is particularly impressive and not often heard in such a style. Add to the confusion, the unsparing vocals of Luca Rocco aren’t exactly intelligible. Though it may take a song or two for the listener to realize all of the lyrics are in the band’s native tongue. Perhaps he’s perfectly articulate. This writer will never know.
There is an awful lot to take in as the album builds. Guitarist Giacomo Rento would make Mike Browning proud with his swarming bee guitar sounds on “PV77” and “Sorte”. “Anabasi” relents on the tempo as Rocco slips in a brief speaking part that offers the only variety in his performance. There is a lack of intonation that might be more of an annoyance if the record were not mixed so well by Giulio Favero (OvO, Bunuel). Instead, the vocals are nestled into the music as a fourth instrument, as they should be.
No doubt influenced by compatriots and peers La Quiete and Raein. There are shades of other fellow countrymen La Crisi and Cripple Bastards, but merely as complimentary vigor and gnash. Despite the lack of metallic hardcore, any fan of mid-period Converge could find something to appreciate on Endocannibalismo. It’s an exhausting listen that reeks of catharsis.
Gotten Out By
Dan started Getting It Out back in 2018 as a stand alone podcast. He’s been writing for music websites for over a decade and finally decided to start his own. Now living in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with his wife and kids, he briefly sang for Baltimore’s Pleasant Living.
