If you’re an atmospheric band that rely on subtleties to drive your music, you really have to strike a chord with me if you want to grab my attention and hold it. While bands like Jeniferever and The Next Autumn Soundtrack had sweeping musical landscapes that were as vast as their influences, it was the fact both bands are so musically interesting that I could listen or watch live for more than 10 minutes and get lost within their masterpieces. But for me to enjoy music that takes an age to get going and never really get round to a chorus…well, it’s pretty much unheard of.
It takes 3-minutes before ‘Sun Secret’ kicks in and the Muse-esque vocals, while well executed, are much needed by that point. Quoting influences such as Far and Tool, the band are certainly not your average 3 minute 30 radio friendly unit shifter, yet at the same time they don’t quite have the songwriting talent to write such sprawling songs that capture the imagination and take it on a varied musical journey. ‘Come Back Down’ is heavier and harder, the closing ‘Deaf To Fatalists’ far more interesting and with the arpeggioed guitar intro, quite clever too. And while no-one could ever argue that Solrun aren’t a talented outfit, this is perhaps a little too ambitious. It could also be a case that this just isn’t completely my thing. I’d hedge my bets and say it’s a little bit of both…