seBENTA appear to be on a mission to put muscular, dark, grunge infused rock back on the map. On the strength of Nova Vaga they intend to do this by blending the cold, doom-laden edge of Danzig’s dystopian blues-metal and the emotive, sonic drama of Staind, built as much on an intangible weight as the power of the musical delivery itself. Post-grunge? Is that a thing? If it is it suits our purpose here for this band is great at capturing all of the power of the intent and delivery of the rawest of grunge bands and doing it with the simplest of lines and leaving behind the “I hate by mum because she made me tidy my room” brattish parochialism which was often at the heart of the scene.
The real charm comes from the fact that although it is the sound of four musicians playing at the top of the alt-rock game, they rarely give away all the goods at once, preferring instead to serve the song and wait for their rare, individual moment in the spotlight, teasing and taunting the listener. Any showboating is reduced to intricate motifs and clever sonic designs which spice the music rather than lime-lit ego massaging that rock is infamous for.
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