Wednesday, 26 November 2025

TARMAK - Delete To Proceed (Album Review)

Release Date: November 07th 2025. Record Label: Self Released. Formats: DD

Delete To Proceed - Tracklisting

1.Delete to Proceed 07:19

2.Careless CRISPR 06:02 

3.Ark of Nowhere 09:58 

4.Gene Roulette 09:10

5.Wörtrilg 07:16

6.Blue Renewed 09:07 


Lineup


Sander - Guitar, chants, concept & visuals

Geert - Bass

Simon - Drums, artwork


Review


Delete To Proceed is the debut full length album of instrumental Post-Metal collective TARMAK who take a cerebral and cinematic approach with their music. As the band a contemporary storytelling theme into the music with areas of Science Fiction combining grounded Post-Rock themes and subtle sound effects which is ultimately quite a thought provoking and progressive sounding record.


TARMAK never play by the rules with a highly intelligent delivery forming throughout every individual track that could be dominated by Post-Metal grooves one moment and the next it’s being dictated by Ambient Post-Rock melodies. Whichever creative turn TARMAK takes, the end result is a complex dark vision with the band successfully avoiding the negative pitfalls of releasing an album such as this. The record does a great job of focusing on a stylish atmospheric narrative which fully sells the overall tension of the album especially within the opening tracks of Delete To Proceed and Careless CRISPR.


TARMAK are perhaps more closely aligned to the likes of RUSSIAN CIRCLES, MOGWAI, THIS WILL DESTROY YOU and MONO instead of the heavier sludgy sounds of PELICAN. TARMAK create songs with a strong Post-Rock energy before slowly transforming into a powerful Post-Metal entity of their own making. There’s a lot more Progressive experimentation which becomes one of the main creative focus for the band on tracks such as Careless CRISPR,  Ark Of Nowhere, Gene Roulette and Blue Renewed.


Though, the best way to approach this album is to see it as one extended instrumental song broken down into individual chapters telling the next exciting parts of the story. As some times TARMAK branches out into areas of Drone, Doom, Stoner Rock and Shoegaze along the way with some intriguing chants being added on the later stages of the record.


Delete To Proceed is a highly involving and deeply emotional album that offers HUGE rewards if you last the soulful and gloomy journey. The technical abilities of Sander, Geert and Simon are simply superb as they put their hearts and soul into this record. The mood can be quite abstract along the way but it moves the album such a brooding and emotionally charged edge when TARMAK experiment with their music by adopting elements you would least expect.


TARMAK are another exciting and highly original Instrumental Rock/Metal band from the Belgian underground scene following the likes of MODDER in delivering their own unique take on the Post-Rock/Post-Metal sound.


Excellent and Highly Recommended.


Words by Steve Howe


Links
Posted by at
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , ,