Album Review: Shuggah – Her Chrysalis (Mongrel Records)

Post-metal artist Shuggah is set to unleash her debut album, ‘Her Chrysalis’, an immersive, conceptual journey born from years of musical and artistic exploration. Inspired by Russian Circles, Chelsea Wolfe, Psychonaut, Cult of Luna, and Tool, the (almost entirely) instrumental album will be released on May 9th, 2025, via Mongrel Records.

Music you feel, rather than hear, even though it’s so ethereal in nature. Shuggah’s debut is immensely weighted with post power and vibrant melody. A true showcase of creativity, where patience is rewarded with one of the most textured listens of the year.

Sombre and mellow, Shuggah creates an immense level of atmosphere with the haunting bleakness of opening track Sirat. Here, it becomes very evident that this is an album you sit back and close your eyes to, letting the soft and gloomy harmonies wash over you. It, like so many tracks here, transforms bit by bit, showcasing a heavy sound without actually being that ‘noisy’.

It’s one of the most incredible things about the record and even at its most dramatic, such as Wilted Wings, it still comes with so much intensity. It’s just coming from a different place and one that is so definable as Shuggah. Debut album, yes, but you can really get a sense of the artist and what their capabilities are here. How rare is that? To understand and feel the uniqueness of an artist already?

The power of Shuggah, and that continues to be showcased in emphatic fashion as Blood & Bone takes us on a beautiful journey. Before Diannas Tree, the longest track on the album, delivers a more experimental experience. One steeped in haunting ambience and dreamy melody. It creeps into the mind, filling it with wonder. Post-metal wonder. Seven minutes disappearing in an instant as you’re left feeling dizzy from the hypnotizing experience.

It is such a highlight, but while it does deserve to be talked about in revered tones, it’s far from alone. Everything up to this point has been incredibly immersive, and everything afterwards, just builds on that. First there is Latibule, a track that combiners fragile melodies with a heavier edge. Then there is Amas Veritas, a track with so much weight to it. One of the album’s most beautiful pieces that is hauntingly thick and horribly morose throughout.

This, like everything else, is an epic showcase of how Shuggah transforms a familiar ‘post’ soundscape into something deeper and darker.

An unforgettable sonic experience is then wrapped up with Vendetta and Lament the Rose. With both creating a vast level of emotion that you can’t help but sink into and delivering astonishing layers of beauty. It truly is an album like no other, and feels so progressive for the post scene, which can sometimes be accused of stagnation. Not Shuggah though, here to change the game, and giving us one of the best albums of the year.

Shuggah – Her Chrysalis Track Listing:

1. Sirat
2. Wilted Wings
3. Blood 7 Bone
4. Diannas Tree
5. Latibule
6. Amas Veritas
7. Vendetta
8. Lament the Rose

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