photo by Soleil Ananda Konkel
With the release of Vol. 1, the forthcoming debut full-length from transcendental rock collective SOON now just two weeks away, today The Obelisk unveils second cut “Burning Wood” for communal ingestion.
Elaborates The Obelisk of the dynamic record overall, “As thirty-five-minutes/eight tracks, it is a substantial-enough long-player, but it covers a scope even broader than its runtime might lead one to believe, and while the group trace their lineage to more indie-minded outfits The Love Language, Bitter Resolve and Grohg, the explorations contained here, from the rolling groove of opener ‘We Are On Your Side’ to the drone ritual closer ‘Rise,’ feel geared most of all toward establishing, developing and generally screwing around with a new sonic identity. That is to say, Vol. 1 is a varied collection of tracks that doesn’t feel hindered by genre one way or another, and a decent portion of its persona comes from that will to move beyond various sonic boundaries. That SOON – the four-piece of guitarist/vocalists Stuart McLamb and Mark Connor, bassist/vocalist Robert Walsh and drummer/vocalist Thomas Simpson – do this while sounding natural in their songwriting and changes makes the debut all the more impressive. A couple plucked acoustic notes intro ‘We Are On Your Side’ before the full-toned electric guitar kicks in, and a shoegazing verse takes hold around a minute in to build tension before the chorus, which uses multiple singers and has a doom-pop anthem feel to it, tripping into late-’60s guitar soloing as if they hadn’t already melded enough styles together. After another verse and chorus, they end acoustic and the sub-three-minute ‘Burning Wood’ takes chugging hold backed by keyboard and a driving riff that somehow still acts as a vocal showcase. The second cut is steadier and more stylistically settled, but ‘See You Soon’ fleshes out a grungier side and makes it clear that SOON haven’t yet shown their full breadth. So it is that ‘Gold Soul’ includes particularly impressive vocal harmonies and strings to add a post-Morricone vibe to its dense riffing and additional percussion behind its guitar solo in the second half, none of which sounds overly kitchen-sink or out of place.”
Read The Obelisk’s remaining words on the record alongside the sounds of “Burning Wood” at THIS LOCATION.
You can also sample “See You Soon,” streaming courtesy of at Under The Radar at THIS LOCATION.
Uniting members of indie stars The Love Language, Bitter Resolve and Grohg, Vol. 1 is set for release on CD, LP and digitally via Temple Of Torturous on March 4th. Preorder your copy today at THIS LOCATION.
What SOON has manifested with Vol. 1 is multifaceted, melodic and adventurous. The Chapel Hill, North Carolina-based quartet pulled from a deep well of influence and experience in crafting its eight-song LP spending a concentrated week of revising and tracking, plus two months of tinkering, at the Greensboro studio Legitimate Business with engineer Kris Hilbert (Torch Runner, Between The Buried And Me, The Body) at the helm.
The result is nothing short of weighty elegance, balancing mettle and melody and shading these songs with psych-rock textures and melodic finesse. Rather than using their low, slow riffs as dredging sinkholes, deliberate momentum turns meditative–with strong forward pushes devoid of any dead weight. Airy melody and psychedelic flourishes keep these songs nimble and even pop-oriented. The balance of power and grace evokes more triumph than decay, but never sacrifices its grand heft. Standout tracks “We Are On Your Side” and “See You Soon” are bursting affirmations that ride heavy groundswell for a powerful uplift. Eager to push their boundaries, “Mauveine” is a stately dirge that uses sparse acoustic strums and somber strings to showcase McLamb’s rich croon. While “Rise” summons a deep otherworldly drone to form a foundation for a funereal incantation.
SOON is undoubtedly a departure from any of its members’ past efforts, but the band’s casual formation and openness to exploration yields a compelling new entity. SOON‘s enveloping debut is as much a product of deliberate focus as it is the offspring of laid-back jam sessions and weekend cookouts
For SOON coverage contact liz@earsplitcompound.com.
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