Solastalgia – S/T EP

I’ve always appreciated the work of small regional tape labels, and Atemptat Sonor, an anarchist imprint closely tied to Barcelona’s squatter movement, embodies this spirit perfectly. Their catalog includes everything from local dirty squatter’s post-punk and raw black metal to minimalist synth projects. Yet one of the label’s most interesting releases so far is the demo from Solastalgia, an industrial crust duo from Barcelona and Zamora.

Industrial crust, sometimes referred to as incrustial, has always held a strange allure. Aside from a handful of classics, it’s a style that remains deeply underexplored. I bet even long-time listeners would likely struggle to name more than a handful post-2020 bands working in this vein. Solastalgia, however, are one of those newer bands that play the style exactly by the book.

On this twelve-minute demo, Edu and Xavi use guitars, synths, programmed drums, and apocalyptic guttural vocals to craft four tracks that reference incrustial pioneers like Filthkick, Spine Wrench, and Optimum Wound Profile, while adding their own dark perspective and singing in Spanish. The band’s name itself is a neologism coined by philosopher Glenn Albrecht, describing the psychological suffering caused by environmental loss. Solastalgia’s lyrics reflect that same mood. They are minimal yet emotionally intense and touch on themes of ecological collapse, existential dread, and anti-authoritarianism. All four songs evoke imagery of destruction and dehumanization, both personal and political. The opener, “Territorio,” for example, is an angry indictment of patriarchy, imperialism, and military expansion. In contrast, the closer, “Carbon,” the longest track on the record, paints a bleak vision of environmental devastation and possibly human extinction. The black and white cover artwork of a bare tree looming against a washed-out horizon, though used by many bands before, is also as classic as it gets, perfectly mirroring the grim tone of the music within.

Whether you’re drawn to the colder, mechanical repetition of Godflesh or the barren, stench-laden fields of Deviated Instinct, Solastalgia doesn’t fail to deliver. The only weak point is the production, which lacks the punch needed to fully convey the material, even at the loudest volume. Hopefully, a follow-up will have a stronger mix to match the intent.