Formed in 2005 by Anton Belov in Chelyabinsk, nearly 2,000 kilometers east of Moscow, in the heartland of Russia, the post-metal luminaries KAUAN have traversed sounds and styles, yet maintained a pervading sense of mystery and emotive ambiance, contrasting the heaviness of metal with moments of quiet introspection. There, I had to paraphrase the profile text on Spotify almost verbatim, because it is so spot on. As if the high quality of the band’s slow-crushing melancholy were not enough to set them miles apart from the average post-metal bunch, the choice of language certainly is; the band name is a Finnish word that translates as “for a long time,” and the lyrics are in Finnish, too. The reasoning behind this rather odd choice is that such a rare language allows for the use of the human voice as an instrument. For a Finn like me, the sense of mystery may not be that strong, lyrically, but I’m sure it adds an extra layer of mystique for the international listeners. Now, the band seems to have relocated to Finland; so, there’s a good chance to catch them on stage, too! For me, the dark mystery conveyed by the music will suffice just nicely, though. In fact, their new album “Wayhome,” released on November 7th, 2025, via Artoffact Records, unfolds with such a profound sense of melancholy and mystique that I feel tempted to rank it as THE album of the year. These metal rogues have always crafted exceptionally beautiful, emotionally compelling music, but I think that on this new endeavor, these masters of melancholy have excelled themselves.
I’m not sure whether I should label KAUAN with the post-metal tag or simply call their music post-rock. The thing is, while some of the songs incorporate heavier elements, even a touch of atmospheric black metal, there is an ethereal, almost full-on ambient feel to the music that deliciously contrasts the slow-crushing melancholy. Speaking of which, compared to some of the best Finnish post-metal gems, such as CALLISTO‘s early albums, the melancholy in question, here, is closer to the fatalistic gloom of Fyodor Dostoevsky than, say, the Slavic mood of misery depicted by those revered Aki Kaurismäki movies. Finnish bands have developed a knack for translating that sort of grim desolation into music, whereas KAUAN takes things one step further, in a way, yet brushes everything with a silver lining of hope – perhaps faint, but hope all the same.
On this new album, the song titles are all English, but the lyrics are sung in Finnish, nonetheless. Looking at the tracklist, there could be an overarching theme to the songs, even: the titles are all pairings of single words, but they seem to spell out a somewhat hero’s journey-like narrative. So, the instrumental opener, “aim / decide,” conveys the feeling of making the decision to embark on such a journey, albeit you can hear the sound of thunder in the background as if to suggest that the journey is not going to be an easy one. Yet, the overall vibe is hopeful, centered around a clean guitar ostinato that repeats throughout the song, with only a slight tint of mournful air breezing in with the introduction of the violin toward the end. Hence, I reckon this song would correspond to ”The call to adventure” stage in the hero’s journey framework.
The plot thickens rather substantially in the next stage, marked by the song, “outline / pave.” The lyrics are quite scarce, but you can easily get the feeling that the song is about returning to a place that used to be home. This homecoming is tinted with a thick air of sadness, though. So, while the atmospheric dialogue between the guitars is somewhat akin to some of the most ambient tracks by GOD IS AN ASTRONAUT, the melancholy vibe is inherently of Slavic nature. Belov‘s gravitas in the vocal department probably feels familiar to all SWALLOW THE SUN fans – his signature, baritone cleans are soulful like those of Mikko Kotamäki. These first two songs lean more toward the post-rock realm than metal.
By the third track, I was already sold, so when “depart / dive” started to introduce heavier elements, I only began to love the new album more. The vocal phrasing follows the same template as in the previous track, so the album’s conceptual nature starts to crystallize even further. The synth motif that kicks in around the 4-minute mark is especially delicious, making the song resonate with an almost LONG DISTANCE CALLING-like air (or maybe even PINK FLOYD, depending on which decade you were born). The song is an anthemic, almost 8-minute journey into the marriage of sound and emotion. I reckon it’s rather telling that it is the second-most popular song from the new album on Spotify. In terms of the album’s overarching narrative, I guess this song would either represent some sort of an ordeal or perhaps an initiation of sorts.
As though borrowing the idea from some of those progressive concept albums from the 1970s, the songs on “Wayhome” recycle some motifs from one song to another. For example, the sorrowful piano motif in the coda of “depart / dive” is revisited in the next song, “leave / let go,” with some delicious variations. This 7-minute epic feels like the centerpiece of the album with its heavy riffs, soaring guitar melodies, and Belov‘s powerhouse vocals alternating between the harsh and the clean. Unsurprisingly, the song has garnered the most streams, over 57,000 in total already, on Spotify. The off-kilter piano ostinato works wonders in tandem with the heavy, slightly polyrhythmic riffs. The wistful saxophone in the song’s coda is the final icing on the cake.
While the rest of the album does not provide much by way of surprises, the songcraft is of such caliber that I have no trouble listening to some more of the same, if you will. Okay, “soothe / sear” plunges headlong into the ambient realm in its middle section in such a way that the use of the word “soothe” in its title is more than justified, by far. Then, “haste / ascend” touches on the Nordic folk aesthetic in every bit as haunting a manner as those bands that explicitly endorse the genre. The song’s last two minutes are arguably the most beautiful moments on the album, which is pretty out of this world, to begin with. Lastly, the most cinematic intro, in turn, belongs to the song, “embrace / repel,” which gears up on the slow-crushing metal riffages while maintaining a tight grip on the PINK FLOYD-esque atmospherics. The ending is just as cinematic, so I could not avoid thinking that the world of film soundtracks could really make good use of this band’s material!
The journey is brought to a close with the straight-up post-rockish “arrive / resolve,” marking the final return, or homecoming. Yet, instead of sounding triumphant in that signature style of film composer John Williams, whose works have adorned movies such as the Indiana Jones franchise, the song unfolds almost like a hymn, or a sound meditation, immersed in deep melancholy. So, the musical journey has come full circle, and maybe there is a faint glimmer of hope on the horizon, but still, the music is tinted with a touch of profound melancholy. As a Finn, I obviously have no problems with that – in fact, that’s the way I like it. John Williams, you can take your Lydian mode and shove it! So far, this year has not exactly been as rewarding as last year, in terms of quality post-rock releases, but this new KAUAN affair more than makes up for it. Yeah, yeah, it isn’t pure-blooded post-rock and blah, blah, blah, but still, I am most curious to see if anything can displace “Wayhome” from being the absolute strongest candidate for the album of the year. There’s only about a month to go…
Written by Jani Lehtinen
Tracklist
- aim / decide
- outline / pave
- depart / dive
- leave / let go
- soothe / sear
- haste / ascend
- embrace / repel
- arrive / resolve
Lineup
Anton Belov – vocals, guitars
Alina Belova – keyboards, backing vocals
Helena Dumell – viola
Niko Salminen – bass
Kristian Merilahti – drums
Label
Artoffact Records
