renkls Nostalgia is an interesting thing, and given to us through the medium of music, can be truly affecting stuff. Which is definitely the case with the black metal inspired EP 'My Forest is Dead' by Extinction Algorithm.

Released digitally for free in 2010, this single track EP runs 26 minutes through multiple peaks and valleys, clinging to a melancholy sadness like it is the only thing left. Fully instrumental, expect none of the shrieks or black metal styles that generally dominate the genre - this is far more introspective and reclusive music, mostly ambient with classical influence; even in its outbursts it is not out to antagonize, but to offer the willing listener a glance backwards in time. Back to the creators childhood and perhaps their own.

What do you see in your own childhood when you cast your mind back? When I listen to this piece I remember my childhood being a bittersweet time, filled with naivety and ignorance. I remember people I hurt and since those years have never seen again. I wonder where they are and if I drastically affected the path of their lives because of what I did. Moreover, I still look back on my past with an overwhelming nostalgia for it. I long for those simple times. I want that easy past where I don't need to put up with the tedious day to day monotony that I, and I suspect most people have to deal with all the time.

I sense this frustration through this albums melancholic and depressive nature. It never batters me to listen to it in one sitting, because every time I do, I'm drawn away from the bitterness of my present life, and cast back to the simpler times. I ask myself, was it better to be naive and ignorant then to become aware of the designs of this world?

This album has no answers for me, just more questions. But if anything, it grabs me on an emotional level like few instrumental pieces can, so I give it a wholehearted recommendation.