A.A. Williams has been keeping some excellent company through tours with the likes of Cult of Luna, Explosions In The Sky, Russian Circles, Sleep Token and Sisters of Mercy. Her collaborative effort with Japanese post rock legends Mono was sublime. In the same sphere as Anna von Hausswolff and Chelsea Wolfe, her gothic symphonic metal crossover finds her playing Roadburn festival. I’m a big fan of the aforementioned artists and loved the Mono track so was keen to hear A.A’s new long player entitled Solstice.
Lead track ‘Poison’ hit the spot and it leads us off with a wave of most satisfying distorted guitar for the soaring chorus. There’s a gothic atmospheric, not quite on the level of Chelsea Wolfe, but a darkened hue none the less. ‘Wolves’ is an absorbing power ballad with alternating clean verse and big noisy chorus. The epic finale pulls in some stunning post metal vibes with scorching guitars blazing fiery melodies. ‘Little By Little’ bristles with an electro throb undertow before erupting into a thunderous riot of searing guitars.
The cinematic ‘Hold It Together’ aches with a fragility as A.A. sings a melancholic melody over piano and strings, that would work as an alternative 007 theme. The latter half of the song veers once again into post metal territory as layers of guitars weave a melodic blanket of noise. ‘Outlines’ feels like it could feature on a western movie soundtrack with some beautiful instrumentation. All good so far.
Now. It’s at this stage of the album that I start to fidget, as another song ‘I’ve Seen Enough’ begins with A.A. accompanied with piano and strings. The tempo for every track so far has been at a steady slow pace and the predictable dynamics start to drag. Here you sense the build-up and release of distorted guitars, but get thrown a merciful curveball as electronic tones replace the dirge. I hate to call it out but the piano/vocals combination that remain through all of ‘The Veil’ could be the start of any of the previous tracks in truth. Deeply entrenched in a quiet/noisy ballad rut it’s hard to keep focussed.
‘Just A Shadow’ finally finds A.A. a little rattled even throwing in a “fucking” but her vocals take on an almost spoken word flow which jars me. The grungy fuzz guitars kick in for the generic chorus, and it sounds like the dying embers of that once exciting genre. The saving redemption comes with the awesome post metal wig out that ends the track. I want more of this!
Next, we have ‘It Won’t Rain’ and yes, you guessed it, piano and vocals again. Crunchy distorted guitar drop? Check. The chorus this time consists of A.A. aimlessly crooning “You-ooh!” and I struggle to keep my headphones on my head. ‘Breathe’ swaps out the piano for a twangy guitar and vocals intro. The drummer’s fee for this record must have been half what it could have been. When the percussion finally does join in, it’s a tired and reluctant snare/cymbal beat a beginner would play. The latter half of the song utilises some lovely strings alongside the power chords which piques my interest a little I will admit.
Might as well stick to the blueprint with the final song and so ‘The Gentle Harm’ starts with clean guitar strums and vocals, minimal percussion. After a fleeting moment where A.A. sounds like she may take off, we’re promptly shoved back into the piano/vocal dynamic I long to escape. It would be amiss if the final song didn’t have that big post metal ending and duly it arrives. Alas, my tolerance has diminished completely, and it has little appeal to me.
This album would have been better served up as two e.ps as trying to get through it in one sitting is something of a chore. The lack of dynamics really got to me, if you hadn’t noticed. When every song features the same plodding and predictable arrangements and instrumentation it simply overwhelms. A.A. is possessed with a great voice, but it is completely underused with some monotonous song writing. The only way I’ll get anything from these songs is to pull one at a time. But to be honest with you, I have no real desire to come back to it. Sadly disappointing.
