Coma Rossi – “Void” | Progressive Rock Central.com

I absolutely enjoyed Coma Rossi’s first, self-titled album; released December 2018. I committed then, to review the next album, when it came out. Well, Coma Rossi’s next album, Void, will be released on July 18^th, of this year.

Much has changed since the debut album. The lineup of the band was one of the first, and most important parts of that change. It has gone from a five-man band, down to a band of two: Gaurav Govilkar and Diane Galen. Gaurav Govilkar plays guitars, bass, keyboards, and sings most of the lead vocals on Void. He is joined by Diane Galen, who plays drums throughout the album. Thomas Huy, sings lead vocals on “Farm of Lights”. All the music and lyrics were written by Gaurav Govilkar. Photography was produced by Shehrazad Amin in Bavaria, Germany.

Void was mixed and mastered by Andreas Rosczyk (Ultha). From their press release, “The writing and recording for this album was done across India, the UK, and Germany”.

Gaurav Govilkar states the message and meaning of Void, “Driven by a constant yearning to stay true to its heart and words that look inward, Coma Rossi strives to achieve that contemplative silence and a familiar melancholy wrapped under the atmospheric, saturated guitars, reeking textures from imperfect synthesizers and explosive drum sounds, like when gearing up for a storm out at the sea”.

Govilkar continues, “Although not a concept album, it has a thread running through about leaving places that one has immersed themselves in, about people leaving due to a separation or death; about grief hitting in waves and dealing with that burst of heaviness, but still holding onto hope and always looking forward. Void brings in a new sonic atmosphere in the Coma Rossi chapter and impales the listener on the pyre of ruffled emotions”.

This album was difficult for one man, mostly, Gaurav Govilkar, to make. He has had some support from former members and friends throughout the progressive rock and Kickstarter communities, to help him bring this album to fruition.

Void opens with a little over a minute, electric guitar instrumental, “Wither”. It is a grinding, slow, metallic, electric guitar song; surrounded by a backing soundscape of keyboards. It sounds like something you would hear from the early grunge era of maybe Soundgarden, or maybe from the recent sounds of The Ocean’s Holocene.

“Waves of Time”, is Voids first single. It is the second track, and the real album opener. Diane Galen’s drums roar, before that grinding electronic guitar buzz takes over. Gaurav Govilkar sings, “Turn around and look the other way. Don’t you know how this feels. To be like this. Never agreeing on the same things. The room gets colder. And you live alone. So far away. Would you now understand. The weight of this guilt. The burden of lies. The waves of time. Keep you afloat. And wipe out. All that you never said!” Then, the roar slows down as Govilkar sings, “You smile and speak. You try to reconcile. The weight of this guilt. The burden of lies. You try to bring all back together. Remembering those dark and painted walls”. Then, it slowly grinds to a halt, before it kicks off again, complete with Galen’s drums, fighting to lift their sound above the grinding roar of the electric guitars.

“Burning”, opens slowly, with a quieter buzz of electric guitars. Then, Galen’s drums gently land, like soft waves on the shore. Thankfully, they cool the buzz long enough to hear Govilkar sing, “Recurring dreams played once again. Burning houses, they are left behind. Suffer, don’t hate, savor. And let the color flow”. Then, the grinding axes, slowly restart their agonizing roar.

Finally, a break from the grinding, electric metal guitar. “Falling Apart”, opens with soft acoustic guitar and Govilkar singing, “Eyes wide open. The insides hurting. A nostalgia. I still dream of. I paid him. Made peace with the devil. To watch it. All fall apart. I still see her. Walking in rain. Fading away. It all starts here. Descends by the fire. She will leave again. I know”. A sad song, set to a lonely, slow beat. Then, the heavy electric guitars return.

“This Red Sky”, is another instrumental song. This time the drumming and keyboards are louder than the high-pitched grinding guitars, at the opening. But more heavy guitars are added. This one is better, because of Galen’s drums. On this one, the rhythm and sound of the electric guitar buzz changes, giving us all some much-needed variation. Govilkar does provide some vocal “ahs” to add the human element to the sound of grinding electric guitars. The longest track on the album at over 8 minutes.

“Oblivion”, opens with more buzzing guitars, but again, with more variation than in the past songs. Govilkar sings, “Time shows in those eyes. Receding from the shore. Counting days as they pass. Leave a memory of the youth. Gone away. Gone away those moments. Leaving this never-ending dream. We have lost our way. In the light of the day. See life passing you through. You won’t now stay here, too long to say. Time and days were so sweet yesterday. A big escape in this red sky. Gone too close, years pass you by. Time, dreams, and memories. Awakened in tides. Your new world”.

“Small Ideas”, opens with more grinding and rolling guitars, before some peace, whilst Govilkar sings, “You have all those small ideas. To build that world. To live in. Pass your dreams. They are all you have. All you could ever. Build into one. Small ideas, dreams fall. This world you built it all. A million years in a day. But you waste it all away”. Govilkar brings in acoustic and softer electric guitar to fill some great space in the song, before closing with the grind again.

“Farm of Lights”, is another instrumental song. This one is one of the best songs on the album. Thomas Huy, sings vocalizations, like something I remember hearing during the space warp travel, near the end of the movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey. The quiet, slow, electric guitar, and keyboards, then, build a Pink Floyd-like soundscape, that I remember from Coma Rossi’s debut album. Eerrie and epic, in all the ways. We definitely needed a lot more of this.

“In Circles”, opens with delicate keyboards! Thank you! Slow electric guitar chords with an almost “Tubular Bells” sound to the keys. Before heavier guitar enters with the drums. Govilkar sings, “Waves crash on the shore. Dragging me down. In all its pain. In circles. You see. The absolute truth. So far From real. And in circles. Don’t hold back. Give in all you have. Time has passed. You by Escape in circles”. A strong closer to complete the album.

You have to take your hat off to Gaurav Govilkar, for trying to complete what the original Coma Rossi began. I really feel for him. Coma Rossi’s Void, is a cry for help. I wish he had the full complement of the band to draw ideas from and collaborate. I am sure this sophomore album started with the best of intentions and ideas. Sadly, it devolved into an album of limited sounds and sounded more like a dirge march. There are some highlights, which I have already mentioned, but please don’t blame Gaurav Govilkar. He has already been through enough pain. Void, is as Govilkar called it from the beginning, “When gearing up for a storm out at the sea, and it leaves the listener impaled on the pyre of ruffled emotions”. Hopefully, now that this second album has been released, Govilkar will have more time to find collaborators and bring to fruition, the third Coma Rossi album. Until then, please buy this album to help in that endeavor. I reach out to the rock and progressive rock communities to support Govilkar’s efforts with invitations for him to perform on your albums in the future. Coma Rossi, was a wonderful dream, with a great sound. Someday, let’s hope it returns to that full presence, that it deserves. Thank you, Gaurav Govilkar! I hope some innovative musicians will join you, like Diane Galen, to help fill the Void!

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