GREY WATERS : BELOW THE EVER SETTING SUN
Eisenwald
Another especially thoughtful outfit from Australia under the Eisenwald banner; if you’re suspicious about this recurring theme, open your mind for a moment, because although this act again features our friends from Austere and Woods of Desolation, it’s a very different creature. “Below the Ever Setting Sun” is the debut EP from Grey Waters, a melodic, dramatic and powerfully emotive piece of work that owes absolutely sod-all to Burzum, but a little to deep, soulful companies such as Anathema.
Grey Waters themselves opt for only the vaguest of descriptions, pointing out that they’re influenced equally by metal and rock, and that their style is ‘bleak’ – both very pertinent specifics. Indeed, the project sits better when not forced into a narrow box. The melody which establishes opener proper “Say Goodbye” is nothing short of gorgeous, contributed to by moving, Katatonia-style clean vocals, but largely carried by the ballsy, dark-rock guitars. With its dynamism and its heartstring-tugging emotional vastness, this track reminds me of the latest from Solstafir, although if anything, Grey Waters are more successfully focused in their song-structuring.
The title track is another excellent exercise in sadness and melody, with a soaring chorus and rich, assured lead guitar work which work up beautifully to incorporate choir synths that sit precisely where they should for maximum effect. It feels epic, open and transcendent; yeah, you could agree with the label’s assertion that we’re feeling ‘bleak despair’ here, but it’s the kind of bittersweet, early hours introspection you conduct with a bottle of wine after your heart’s been stomped on, not suicidal screeching in a forest. In this vein, “The Truth In Your Eyes”, whilst driving and pretty, is maybe a little too maudlin for me, but “Broken” is a superb finish, attaining a huge, poignant sound packed with chorals and strings, but dominated by the purposeful and potent guitar, and set off by some well-placed growls.
There’s loads to love about “Below the Ever Setting Sun”, and I truly hope that Grey Waters will take off in earnest following its release. If nothing else, I can hear more of Tim’s drumming, which I’ve rated highly across all of his projects, but no, it’s the full package that’s so attractive – beautiful, rousing hymns of loss with no self-imposed boundaries but plenty of poise and ambition. A genuinely lovely EP that deserves a wide audience.
85/100
ELLEN SIMPSON
