(Photo Credit - Big Hassle Media)
Advance Review - Leon III: Antlers in Velvet (March 5, 2021)
If you're looking for some heady music that has a sound so uniquely it’s own, look no further than Leon III's Antlers in Velvet. It's got the psychedelic spirit of Pink Floyd with the roots influence of The Grateful Dead. With one foot firmly placed in the psychedelic and the other in roots/rock, Leon III make a sound that's easy to listen to and easy to drift away in.
The album stands out among its peers because of its cohesiveness. In a music industry that is dominated by single releases, Antlers in Velvet is the rare exception out there that feels like a deliberate, unified collection. This unity harkens back to the idea that you get an album for the experience or the journey of all the songs on the record, not just a few. Between the emphasis on singles and the exceeding use of greatest hits and playlists, it can be easy to lose out on what the artist wants to share with a record. From start to finish Antlers in Velvet had me hooked both musically and lyrically.
Some of my favorite parts on Antlers in Velvet include, the trance Leon III builds in "Fly Migrator" and the vocal highs on "Rumors of Water". However, Antlers in Velvet takes me back to the spirit of a past era. There's just something pure about the music that reminds me of the feeling Hunter S. Thompson famously captured in his "wave" quote. Put another way, Antlers in Velvet isn't something that you simply listen to, it's something you experience.
I don't know what else to say, this album is that damn good, I just pre-ordered my orange haze variant from Leon III's website. You should probably get on that too.
Rating - 5/5