released January 28, 2022
#4 Album of the Year 2022
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#4 Progressive album of mid 2022
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- Music Waves (France)
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#5 of 2022
- VDE
#37 Metal Album of 2022
- KMSA Friday Metal
'A fascinating work throughout, heavy but never monolithic, tragic but teeming with a slender hope, refined but vibrant with a richness both instrumental and melodic."
- The Black Circle (France)
"Each following track really has its own feel that’s wholly different from each preceding song. Despite the differences between each number, there’s clearly a thread going through each track that binds them all together. There’s an epic quality to the entire record that rises above the lo-fi nature of the production. The fuzzy bass riff gives every song that extra Oomf it needs to be powerful. I may not know a lot about Greek philosophy, but I know damn good music when I hear it. The Republic is it for me."
- Heavy Blog is Heavy
“When you reach the pressing final track The Spindle more than fatigue you perceive the satisfaction of having listened to a work of great value.”
- Mournful Sounds (Italy)
"Thumos are quite the wonderful find, progressive instrumental post-rock amazeballsness. Truly fucking epic soundscapes, what you wished the soundtrack to your dreams sounded like. Their latest (of many, so many, this band has been quite prolific) is breathtaking. They really know how to expand and contract sound, and add dimension. There's a black metal influence thrown into the mix here as well, and some snyth might suddenly throw a listener off a bit. Sounds like aot of time went into these tracks, very unique. It's really a trip, highly recommend." 5/5
- Forest of Heavy
“This is such a fantastic release, and being the first full length from this band, it is making me very excited for whatever else they have in store in the future. This album I think will be something people will be looking back to in the future, and has an almost timeless sound to it all thanks to the song writing. Perhaps, much like the 10 books themselves, these 10 tracks will be remembered for some time.”
- Runic Reviews
“It's hard to imagine something being so powerful and commanding yet so atmospheric and ethereal at the same time and yet the band have pulled it off flawlessly. Not only is the album a thing of true beauty but it’s so engaging that it will have you coming back for multiple listens. At the time of writing this I'm already on my third full-listen through (not counting partial listens). Currently due to the musicianship and song writing ability this sits in my top 10 of the year to date.”
- Cave Dweller Music
“The Republic is a very effective record, simultaneously catchy and dissonant, where all the details are well-thought and balanced against each other. It features a solid number of well-written riffs, strong compositions and great sound that would appeal to extreme metal fans, lovers of post-rock and to some of the more adventurous prog lovers. After all, it's good to have a record that you can both headbang to and carefully listen to with earphones on.”
8/10
- Dutch Progressive Rock Pages (
dprp.net)
“Impressively, there isn’t a chink of weakness anywhere to be found, with clever little melodic motifs hidden in plain sight to ensure that you are rewarded for staying the course through some of the overtly challenging sections. The result is an album that impresses right from its opening movements and simply never lets that standard slip from there.”
4.5/5
- Sea of Tranquility
"Thumos refines with "The Republic" their art of an energetic hardness, delivering a bewitching first album, alloy of a dramatic post metal and a doom with progressive hints. A must have!"
4/5
- Music Waves (France)
"This is an epic album from its beginning to its end, and its main drawback is, precisely, its epic proportions.”
- Subterraneo Webzine (Italy)
“Very much an introverted and atmospheric laden creation this one, and fairly dark in tone as well, and those who tend to find a description like dark, atmospheric laden instrumental post-metal to be alluring should have a good chance of finding this album to be an enjoyable one.”
- Progressor (Norway)
“Feel Plato's intellectual weight crush your cerebrum. Thumos transmute the philosophical Republic into a digestible post-metal offering.”
- Invisible Oranges
"There are two singles available at the time of writing, The Virtues and The Cave. Both of these tracks exhibit A+ musicianship, which is extremely important in all music but even more so in the instrumental genre. The guitars capture that post-metal feel with accuracy, while the rest of the band creates the perfect backdrop for the guitars to shine."
- The Sleeping Shaman
"A fascinating concept, a capable band and music that really challenges perceptions, The Republic is one hell of an album. One that doesn’t need prior knowledge of Plato’s work to appreciate, you just have to be willing to invest the time in this record. What a debut release this is. Thumos have delivered one of 2022’s best albums already."
10/10
- Games, Brains, and a Head-Banging Life
"An instrumental rock record can quickly turn out to be boring, especially if you don't practice one of the highlighted instruments yourself. Here there is nothing. The music is splendid. It is not at all necessary to have read the complete work, even a single half-page of Plato, or even to be unaware of his name, just listen. It's strange at the end of each piece you want to know the rest, a real musical comic strip. Thumos keeps us in suspense. We let ourselves be guided. And we understand that the work forms an organic whole."
- Purple Chronicles (France)
“This is a fascinating project, and this mesmerizing song (The Virtues) is further proof of that.”
- No Clean Singing
“ An unexpected, intriguing and complicated record.”
- Pit of the Damned (Italy)
"It turns out philosophy is pretty damn metal. Somewhere between progressive, melodic, and doom, Thumos hovers high in the skies churning out thick grinding walls of epicness. One cannot overstate the epicness. Washing dishes to this album becomes a battle with a sea monster and introduces deep questions on morality. Personally, I don't bother with questions like, "what is good?" because things like this album so clearly are. That said, if you are the type of listener that is into those kinds of questions, there are Platonic references a plenty in The Republic and riffs that are more brutal than your ethics tests ever were."
- Issues Magazine 58
""Simultaneously, what brings the album alive is the excellent transfixing (alternating) between the diverse composition of guitar and drum work – that play together in a tight unit, not overpower each other, giving the whole album this awe-inspiring epic and theatrical atmosphere" - topped with ten equally solid, strongly composed, picturesque songs, top-notch production in sound (crisp and solid), with overwhelming and awe-inspiring/beautiful craftsmanship, musicianship and showmanship, and a release that's genuinely powerful, transfixing & entertaining (surprising) from the moment of play and draws the listener deep within the music – as one further goes through the pages.
Not to be missed"
- Metal 1 on 1 (UK)
metal1on1.squarespace.com/instrumental/thumos-the-republic-review
“Beautiful album of stratospheric post metal”
- Order ov the Black Arts
Weekly Recommendation
- Denpa Fuzz
"It delivers a clever and mindblowing experience." 83/100
- Madman Reviews
Top Plays 2022
- PirSquared • thesoundofpostrock
“Amazing blend of many metal genres. A must listen.”
- Le Mellow Man
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