Mission Jupiter – “Aftermath” (Album Review)

by Lucy Harker

Jun 22, 2025

General Information

Personnel:

Kate Varsak – vocals
Vlad Shvakel – guitars
Eugene Zuyeu – drums

Guest:
Dmitri Soldatenko – saxophone

Producer: Vlad Shvakel & Eugene Zuyeu

Release date: June 20th, 2025

Setting the Scene

Mission Jupiter steps quietly into a new chapter with Aftermath, their third album, a collection of ten tracks that push their sound into darker, more cinematic realms. With Kate Varsak’s voice now at the center, the band follows a path carved by recent singles that hint at a restless evolution, a journey unfolding in measured shadows.

First Impression

The first listen to Aftermath feels like stepping into a landscape both heavy and delicate. The music moves between soaring energy and quiet introspection, with moments that rise fast and others that linger like a fading shadow. Kate Varsak’s voice carries the weight of the songs, wrapping the listener in a melancholic yet powerful embrace.

Similar Sounds

If you’re into any of these artists, this album should be on your radar.

FlyleafLacuna CoilDead Sara

Visual Vibes

The imagery fits the sound of Aftermath with eerie precision. Like the music, it captures a contrast between light and weight, between clarity and emotional haze. There’s a sense of isolation in the silhouette, but also a strange kind of strength. Much like the album itself, the cover feels like standing at the edge of something vast, looking inward and outward at once.

Track on Repeat

Self-Destruction rips through the silence from the first strike, its relentless riffs pounding like a restless heartbeat. The tension pulls you under, dragging you into a storm you can’t escape. Kate’s voice is raw and haunting, bleeding with a fierce intensity that commands every shadow of the song.

Stand Out Lyric

Sometimes it hurts
I think twice and choose the action for salvation
No matter what
I will climb to leave no chances for obsession

– “Sometimes It Hurts”

A balance of pain, reflection, and determination in a tight, powerful way.

In-depth Notes

Musical Shape 🎸

Aftermath moves through shadows and light with a restless heart. It blends heavy, driving energy with moments of fragile calm, weaving sorrow and strength into every note. The music breathes melancholy, yet carries a fierce pulse beneath, like a quiet storm waiting to break. Each song feels like a story told in whispers and shouts, wrapped in voices that hold both pain and hope.

Vocal Performance 🎤

Kate Varsak’s voice cuts through the darkness with a raw, aching clarity. It carries the weight of every sorrow and every spark of defiance, fragile one moment, fiercely alive the next. Her delivery is both intimate and commanding, like a whispered secret and a rallying cry rolled into one. Through her voice, the album’s melancholy finds its soul, haunting and unforgettable.

Production Quality 🎧

The production is clear and powerful, capturing the album’s dark intensity without losing its raw edge. Every sound cuts through with purpose, pulling you deeper into its haunting world.

Themes and Concepts 💭

The album explores the fragile balance between pain and hope, wrestling with loneliness, inner conflict, and the search for meaning amid chaos. This tension is captured through lyrics that are both honest and poetic, matched by music that shifts between haunting melancholy and fierce intensity. The result is a compelling expression of struggle and resilience that pulls the listener into the heart of Aftermath’s story.