Japanese rockers The Submerged capture their acclaimed, modern live experience on their mini album Fabrica. Operating primarily within VRChat, a massive social VR platform where users interact as 3D avatars, the act performs in custom-built virtual venues. Their sound spans from the post-punk energy of the opening tracks to the distorted, shoegaze-infused resolution of the finale, overall showcasing an album with a consistent array of fantastic songwriting and ardent productions.

The band’s knack for spirited, anthemic charisma is evident right away on opener “May Girl,” where wordless vocal soaring and twanging guitar intensity converge amidst a thick bass pulsing. Thrashing guitar distortion, shimmering jangles, and elongated vocal invigoration delight continuously, into a brief rhythm-less sense of momentum as vocals and guitar lead into a raucously delightful conclusion. Coming next, “Don Quixote” channels a contagious momentum as vocals swell from initial dreaminess into fervent exclamations, whilst panting percussive elements lead a post-punk charm amidst the sporadic garage-rock guitar stylings. The release’s opening one-two punch wastes no time presenting a dynamic, infectious rock appeal.

Perhaps the album’s most free-flowing, spontaneous-feeling effort, “Sleeping Planet” navigates with expressive vocals resembling spoken-word, stream-of-conscious intrigue — then arriving into blasts of emotion; the style reminds enjoyably of black midi in its stylish prowess. Then arrives “Green River,” a moody standout that stuns in its heartfelt vocals and fuzzy guitar tones, with shades of shoegaze in the caressing guitar layers and melancholic vocal outputs. It’s not exactly a forlorn-sounding track — still excelling in its hard-rocking guitar tones — though does impress with vocals that manage to exude a sense of vulnerability, relative to the anthemic confidence apparent elsewhere.

The album’s title track is a thorough delight as well, enjoyably relentless in its persistent doses of heavy guitar distortion and vocal effects. Blaring, wordless vocal effects resonate especially at the outro, into a beautiful wall of feedback, while the build-up there envelops in shifting from slabs of distortion into twangier illumination. Concluding the release, “Halley’s Comet Night” is a thoroughly satiating farewell, full of palpable emotion — especially as the “1-2-3-4” vocal count-up moves into panting rhythms, enthralling guitar heaviness, and catchy vocal entrancement. Fabrica is a consummate rock ‘n’ roll success from The Submerged.

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