MESSA - The Spin

It has been a little over two years since I wrote a full-on music review.  There is no real reason for that.  I just haven't been in the right headspace for it, and besides, Now Playing allows me to mollify my need to babble about what I've been spinning lately.

Speaking of which, let's babble about The Spin.  I've been freaking over this album since it came out.  I would be genuinely surprised if it didn't turn out to be my top album of 2025.  I know, it's only April, but...man.  That's my critic quote to slap on the cover.  "I know it's only April, but...man."  Doesn't that say it all?  I'll have you know that thanks to this website, my love for Messa is well-documented.  2022's Close seemed to be their breakthrough release, but I went nuts for 2018's Feast for Water.  I'm a big proponent for their brand of loose, expansive doom.  The Spin might contain their strongest material yet.

First off, Sara's vocals are so on-point, they're threatening (in a sweet way).  "Immolation" shows off her ability to play with a jazzy cadence.  Often times, the verses will lull you into a trance, and you forget that she can belt.  The high note at the end of "Fire on the Roof" may cauterize the nearest open wound.  That's probably my favorite song, but special mention must be made of "Reveal."  Somehow, the guys in Messa have figured out how to infuse blastbeats with a slide guitar.  Should it work?  No.  But does it work?  Yes.  I'm also low-key amazed by the call-and-response between guitar and trumpet on the eight-minute "The Dress."  It's already an epic song, what with the layered chorus and the riffs that smack of Tony Iommi.  It may be trite to compare a doom band to Black Sabbath, but the influence is clear.

Guitar solos.  I dig 'em, and I particularly dig the lightning flurry (??) of harmonized leads on "Void Meridian."  Likewise, the solo on "The Dress" completes the song.  I'm trying to decide if there is anything here I don't enjoy.  The Spin's most grievous offense is the fact that it ends.  We only get seven tracks, which run for forty minutes, give or take.  The album ends with "Thicker Blood," a tune that features some truly demented black metal shrieks.  Eh, it keeps things spicy and unpredictable.  I will say, I haven't completely fallen for "Immolation" yet, but that is subject to change upon repeated listens.  I do plan on listening to The Spin repeatedly.

If you have the capacity to entertain the doomiest of dooms, take it from the Dommiest of Doms (hmm, I've turned into a nickname generator).  This is an easy one to grade.  For what it's worth, I'd rank The Spin above Close.  Opinions and all that.