Mechanics of Dominion Esmerine

"Just as there are certain novels that, read too intensely, make you feel that you are also in a novel, and that every movement you make is being recalled somewhere in narrative form, there are records that impute meaning into minute corners of your existence. Mechanics of Dominion is the soundtrack to a slow, elegiac, softly sad imaginary film concerning man's inhumanity to man and the aftermath of ecological disaster. Esmerine, based in Montreal, and part of the city's apocalyptic post-rock scene (the group was founded by Godspeed You! Black Emperor percussionist Bruce Cawdron and Thee Silver Mt. Zion cellist Rebecca Foon) are at the minimalist, neo-classical end of things. There are strings of course, laden with meaning, shimmering marimba and glockenspiel, piano-like droplets of rain, heavy with sadness. Jamie Thompson, Brian Sanderson and Jérémi Roi join Cawdron and Foon with horns, acoustic guitars, bass, contrabass, music box and violas to form a ramshackle but perfectly delicate contemporary chamber group. There is no one archive here – more the fusion of various old record collections discovered in attics. Mechanics of Dominion is careful, elegant and cerebral but it is also quietly stirring." – The Wire

"Constellation Records continues to be on a tear, the latest Esmerine record its crown jewel, eclipsing even the latest Saltland LP from Rebecca Foon. The themes of that album remain intact, and are amplified here: the world is in disarray, climate change is accelerating, and a rough beast continues to slouch towards Bethlehem. On Mechanics of Dominion, the band continues to integrate a large swath of sounds (pump organ, marimba, kamel ngoni), but demonstrates great diversity within the set as well. The arc of the album – some may say a circle – allows order to wrap around chaos, peace around war, truth around “post-truth”. Throughout the set, there is such beauty. Esmerine has created a tidy world that reflects not the world as it is, but as it might be." – A Closer Listen

"A sequel of sorts to 2015's Lost Voices, Esmerine's latest offers a dynamic response to the dire state of the natural world we're bound to in eight crossover chamber pieces. It's a delicate, cautious demonstration, but Mechanics of Dominion is a bold, gripping and brilliantly nuanced addition to Esmerine's gorgeous catalogue, swelling with hope and brimming with energy." – Exclaim

"The subtlety of the melodies, and the expansive power they hold, are responsible for Esmerine’s tour de force. The way ‘The Space in Between’ is introduced, where a few simple keys can build so much emotion, also sums up the nature of Mechanics of Dominion. Minimalistic in its outlook and yet with rich instrumentation, traditional in both its inclusion of classical and folk influences and still forward-thinking and experimental. It is an act that has been standing between these worlds, bridging them together better than ever in their most potent work yet." – Pop Matters

"Esmerine don’t hold anything back on their latest album; they’re at their most intense. Their songcraft has been elevated once again. Mechanics Of Dominion is a mood-swinger, breaking through the sobering walls of tragedy and despair until it reaches a place of relief and the sunrise of a small smile." – Fluid Radio

"The Juno-winning Canadian chamber group’s sixth album channels the existential and environmental dread of their Montréal neighbors and labelmates Godspeed You! Black Emperor through a state of graceful introversion not unlike that of an old peer in modern chamber music, Rachel’s, from Louisville, Kentucky. Esmerine gracefully channel their future unease." – Line of Best Fit