(Photo Credit - @miakirby)
Advance Review - Sea Wolf: Through a Dark Wood (March 20, 2020)
Sea Wolf (the project of Alex Church) has returned with his first album since 2014 in his new release Through a Dark Wood. Church's unique blend of indie and folk has been sorely missed on the alt scene. I first fell in love with his unique sound on 2007's Leaves in the River, especially the track "The Cold, The Dark & The Silence". I can say definitively, that I'm glad he's back. With that in mind, let's take a dive into Through a Dark Wood.
Through a Dark Wood begins with the hauntingly beautiful instrumental "Forward". This transitions into the perfectly paced "Blood Pact". With it's reverb ridden guitar work and methodically moving melody, "Blood Pact" is a gorgeous track. Church's vocals ethereally lay on top of the melody like a fog on a fall morning. It's really a great place for this album to start.
"Break it Down" and "Forever Nevermore" pick up the pace a bit. Both feature Sea Wolf's signature guitar sound prominently. Heavy on the reverb and just the slightest tough of distortion. Moving along, the hook on "Fear of Failure" is absolutely captivating and is a high point on the album.
Through a Dark Wood wrestles with themes of everything from love, loss, current events, and finding your way through all of it. It's a brutally honest and raw album that evokes pure emotion from start to finish and Church's unique perspective runs deep throughout. For fans of indie or folk, you'll find what you're looking for here. If you're looking for the perfect record for a rainy day, look no further.
Rating - 4/5
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