Delightfully Perplexing Doomgaze Trio WAR Releases Sophomore Album "VENIVIDIWAR"

 

WAR band photo

When you think of genres of music that end with the suffix "-gaze", you often think of dreary, atmospheric, hazy, perhaps even washed-out tones. I've heard them called "depressing", I've heard them called "boring", but I've always been very intrigued by the -gaze genres, finding them to have a certain graded but powerful emotional expressiveness in which the message is often the sum of its parts. In that way, this music is like a piece of abstract art; something that sounds a bit different and carries a slightly different personal meaning for each listener.  

I promise, you'll see these genres in a new light after feasting your ears upon WAR, a trio from Leipzig, Germany. Not only does the group harness the melancholic, cloudy expressiveness of doomgaze and shoegaze, but they also utilize the harsher tones of screamo in addition to the unpredictable structures of prog and math rock. Needless to say, this combination results in a unique sound, but it's also one that's never boring, particularly due to WAR's sudden bursts of intensity that alter the mood at the drop of a hat. 

WAR released their debut EP Split in 2023 and now the band is breaking new ground with their sophomore album VENIVIDIWAR, which was self-released on October 17, 2025. 

Perhaps unsurprisingly based on its aforementioned stylistic influences, VENIVIDIWAR formed "between political darkness and personal grief" with "lyrics cut deep into the fractures of time... The anger simmers beneath the surface, but now and then, a glimpse of hope breaks through. All delivered with an intensity that lingers in your gut."

VENIVIDIWAR is "for those who crave loud music, odd time signatures, and the beauty of controlled chaos". 

Let's take a closer look... 

WAR - VENIVIDIWAR

WAR VENIVIDIWAR album cover photo

1.) Morning Chime

Morning Chime begins with gravelly stoner/doom and desert rock influences that are ultimately encroached upon by impassioned post hardcore, growing exponentially in intensity. It's a combination that, to my surprise, works incredibly well. This opening track also introduces WAR's vocal harmonies, which are an integral part of their overall sound. 

2.) Kraktus

Kraktus is palpably mournful right out of the gate. The song alternates between a sluggish, woebegone trudge, light but somber atmospheric reprieves, and crushingly heavy, sudden bursts of ire. To me, these elements represent stages of mental anguish: unrelenting sadness, acceptance, and anger. The unrestrained vocals deliver a bone-chilling, emotive performance throughout, overflowing with a despair that you can feel festering in your soul. 

3.) Grifter

This song makes great use of building as it begins with doleful and hazy doomgaze/shoegaze before the mounting fervor overspills into some heavier post metal textures. The sadness expressed, instead of merging with other negative emotions such as anger, seems to center solely on heartbreak here, a feeling that's reflected in the softer, more cautious delivery from vocals and instrumentals alike. 

4.) Warus 

Warus has one of the most interesting, clever compositions I've had the pleasure of hearing in a long time, and it's one that keeps the listener constantly guessing which direction this dynamic song will go. The almost funky start takes one by surprise, as it's certainly a change of pace when compared to what we've heard so far on VENIVEDIWAR. This flows into the heaviest, most turbulent part of the song, a brief but highly concentrated cyclone of emotional chaos. Just as quickly, Warus transitions into the eye of the storm, a light and dreamy refuge that, for a fleeting moment, might convince you that the tempest has passed. Not so - while the storm is very much still brewing, it's been around long enough that there's a certain level of acceptance of its presence. At this point, soaring vocal harmonies glide over a churning, grumbling undertow of bass while the guitar and drums move between being pulled back down into darkness and joining the vocals in their sunnier, more optimistic disposition. 

The lyrics beautifully reflect this transition in the song as the narrator comes to terms with the changelessness of the situation, and his newfound inability to continue to accept it, boldly calling out the lack of progression within the silence: 

"You say it's alright now
Sometimes we need to live out lies
And you wear that grin on your face
It's the saddest I've seen in a while

But is it getting better?
Cause no one knows what to do with this time
And I can't relate to this static hum
Interplay of dusk and dawn"
5.) Entropy

Entropy is the first WAR song that I heard, and it's the one that got me hooked on the band. Is this track particularly dejected in tone? Absolutely. But I'm living for that coarse and weighty rumble under the somber but powerful vocal harmonies, the intensity of which are particularly noticeable on this song. Things are kept interesting by a tangle of math rock textures and prog structures after the midway point, emphasizing the growing complexity of the mood at hand. 

6.) Tremor

Tremor possesses a strikingly calm aura in comparison to the previous songs on VENIVIDIWAR. With the exception of one verse, the vocals are soothing and melodic. The most compelling aspect of the song for me is its ability to remain rather tranquil in spite of instrumentals that, although often hushed, still reverberate with an echoing density that you can feel in your bones. Tremor generates a most immersive kind of serenity, a feeling as placating as it is gripping. The mood of the song is grave but ultimately hopeful, its lyrics calling for fortitude and perseverance against some of the world's darker forces: 

"Take your stance against the world
I hope you'll pass it on
Please remind me that I'm not alone
Face the ugly and the grief
Oppose this misery
Bear your fate as misconceived"

7.) Mimicry II

While Tremor is a song that abruptly steered the mood of VENIVIDIWAR toward one of peace and hopefulness, Mimicry II takes it a step further by being altogether ethereal. It's a simple song overall, featuring words that are few but stirring: 

The wise man is growing old
The wise man spoke 

We're not the same
Life is odd
We're not the same 
Not at all"

Excepting an explosive burst of dense and leaden, saturnine instrumentals near the end of the song, Mimicry II is lighter-than-air but intensely powerful on an emotional level, with gossamer vapors that rise around you while simultaneously clenching at your heart with bittersweet notions. 

8.) Boggart 

At first, final track Boggart drastically shifts the vibe by being straight up FUN. Granted, there's some venom in the vocals and heavy, metallic instrumentals, but the energy absolutely hits the spot after my heart was mangled by the previous two songs. Just before the midway point, Boggart takes a sudden dismal turn, bringing back more post hardcore and emo tones by its end. 

 

  Final Thoughts

First of all, I think it bears mentioning that I'm not a fan of emo or post hardcore music, so I was very surprised that WAR's sound intrigues me as it does. In this case, emo is just one of many stylistic influences that work together to create WAR's unique, chameleonlike tone. While melancholia is undoubtedly a dominant shade throughout VENVIDIWAR, a temper which is also helped along by the band's doomgaze influences, its anguish isn't always clear cut. It contains layers and subtleties that often illustrate a sequence of shifting moods, particularly anger, sadness, and heartbreak. The emo influence is most noticeably heard in the intensely expressive vocals and haunting harmonies, making the emotiveness of each song ten times more palpable. However, it's the beacons of acceptance, hope, and even optimism that pop up from time to time that make WAR stand out from other bands with a doleful proclivity. The addition of stoner, math, and prog rock to the mix adds a boldness to these nuances, leading to unexpected twists and turns while providing a beautifully layered, thought-provoking listening experience. 

This brings me to one of the main takeaways that I received from VENIVIDIWAR: Even in the face of unrelenting pain or injustice, there's a lot to be said for self-advocacy and expression, realism, and above all, action. That doesn't necessarily solve everything instantly or make the process pleasant, but it effectively clears the lenses through which we view the world and is the catalyst to producing change. 

WAR band photo live

More About WAR

WAR is:
Arvid - Guitar, Vocals
Fred - Bass, Vocals
Tim - Drums, Vocals 

You can follow WAR and listen to their music at the following links:
A massive thank you to Good Boy PR for the promo! 


CHECK OUT SCREAMING FROM THE HEAVY UNDERGROUND ON YOUTUBE! 

WAR - VENIVIDIWAR REVIEW, VIDEO VERSION:

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