Glassing is a physical attack using a glass or bottle as a weapon. It’s also a Texan post-hardcore/metal ensemble which can get as poppy as it can get black metal. On this, their 2nd full length, the trio of guitarist Cory Brim, vocalist/basist Dustin Coffman (try to say that fast and not think of "Rain Man" or "Tootsie"), and drummer Jason Camacho combine alternative/progressive rhythms of Tool, the hard core screems and raw riffery of early ZAO, with a dose of shoegazing/black metal Alcest and pour liberal helpings of U2-style delicate gorgeous melodicism, for an overall unique, if flawed blend.

The album opens up with the most advanced track, "When You Stare", showcasing the band’s ability and highlighting Comacho’s penchant for excellent complex irregular drumwork as well as advertising Andrew Hernandez’ thoughtful, detailed yet powerful production. "Lobe" is a short but tight composition as beautifully sorrowful as it is brutal and so is the most effective "Way Out", extremely aggressive while best showcasing the section, which ends with an excellent staccato akin to Pantera’s "A New Level" right before transition to "Walk". "Follow Through" is probably the most tastily jazzy and black metall-ish track all the more because both tracks are separated by delicate dreamy instrumentals.

The delicate dreamy instrumentals are where Glassing loses their momentum. I can understand the need for balance and the intent to give the listener a moment to catch a breath and reflect on the more aggressive material but did we really need 3 out of 10 tracks to be instrumentals? I would have preferred more firepower, instead. As it is now, I feel like the potential for consistent excellence was wasted on, well, too much shoegazing and not enough butt kicking.

"Spotted Horse" is a very good album. Brim’s guitar is convincing and versatile in aggressive as well as gorgeously melodic moments fitting well with Coffman’s hard core screams recalling Shawn Jonas (ex-ZAO), but the album is wildly inconsistent. However, if you like progression and some experimentation within the limited post-hardcore/metal genre, by all means, give them a try or two.

https://glassing.bandcamp.com/