Name: Veils of Winter
Brand: BlackWater HolyLight

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

EZRDR110CD

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Colour

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music US

Limited edition

Release date

2019-10-11

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier US

RTUK

Tax rate US

Sales:8.875

UPC / Barcode

603111735320

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Total Cap

1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

BlackWater HolyLight

Genre US

New Psyche & Psyche Rock

Label US

Riding Easy Records

<a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/diiv/deceiver">DIIV - Deceiver</a>

Rough Trade Exclusive Translucent Galaxy. Includes bonus disc. Comes with DIIV Poster and Bonus 7" featuring Sparklehorse / Alex G Covers.

DIIV’s Deceiver is an audible catharsis: incisive guitars, crawling beat &amp; squealing melodies gorged with fuzz, applied freely onto open wounds. With producer Sonny Diperri (My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails, Protomartyr), the band’s signature melancholic dream pop takes cues from a heavier sonic palette, namely from grunge - a genre whose most prominent figure was notoriously taken by overpowering forces - but here frontman Zachary Cole Smith aspires to cicatrize, and he does so with his best writing ever.

1. DIIV - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/diiv/deceiver">Deceiver</a>

2. Metronomy - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/metronomy/metronomy-forever">Metronomy Forever</a>

3. Iggy Pop - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/iggy-pop/free">Free</a>

4. Brittany Howard - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/brittany-howard/jaime">Jaime</a>

5. Angel Olsen - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/angel-olsen/all-mirrors">All Mirrors</a>

6. Penguin Cafe - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/penguin-cafe/handfuls-of-night">Handfuls of Night</a>

7. Temples - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/temples/hot-motion">Hot Motion</a>

8. BlackWater Holylight - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/blackwater-holylight/veils-of-winter">Veils of Winter</a>

9. Jenny Hval - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/jenny-hval/the-practice-of-love">The Practice of Love</a>

10. Vivian Girls - <a href="https://www.roughtrade.com/us/vivian-girls/memory">Memory</a>

Albums of the Month October 2019

Albums of the Year 2019 Top 100

BlackWater HolyLight is an American heavy Psych Rock / Doom Metal / Stoner Rock band hailing from Portland, Oregon. Founded in 2016, the band has quickly gained recognition for their unique blend of genres and captivating performances.

Inspired by a diverse range of influences, BlackWater HolyLight delivers a powerful and mesmerizing sound that takes listeners on a sonic journey. Their music is characterized by heavy riffs, haunting melodies, and hypnotic rhythms that create an immersive experience for fans.

With similarities to artists such as King Buffalo, The Well, and MaidaVale, BlackWater HolyLight has carved out their own distinct sound within the rock music scene. Their dynamic live shows have earned them a dedicated following and critical acclaim.

Vinyl variants, bonus material and signed editions exclusively available from Rough Trade.

Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts. It’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. As a heavy band, their songs aren’t anchored to riffs, but rather riffs come and go in waves that surface throughout the band’s meditative, entrancing songs. It’s a hypnotic sound, with orchestral structures that often build tension and intrigue before turning the song on its head — not by simply getting louder or heavier, nor by just layering elements. They expertly subvert the implied heaviness of a part, dissecting it and splaying the song's guts out to seep across the sonic spectrum.

Now, having toured together extensively following the band’s wildly-successful breakout self-titled debut in 2018, Blackwater Holylight has honed their sound and identity to a powerfully captivating beast. Their live set is all about the slow build, seeming to combine the melodic tension of early Sonic Youth crossed with the laconic fever-dream blues of the first Black Sabbath album, and wiry experimentation of post-punk and krautrock. The lineup on this album is Allison (Sunny) Faris (bass / vocals), Laura Hopkins (guitar / vocals) and Sarah McKenna (synths), with new guitarist Mikayla Mayhew and drummer Eliese Dorsay fleshing out their sound in exciting ways.

Veils of Winter opens with fuzzed-drenched, drop-tuned bass and baritone guitar leading a dirge riff on Seeping Secrets. Faris’ lilting and funereal vocals drop in, adding to the mournful atmosphere until a short turnaround progression hints at changes to come, as Faris and Hopkins harmonize eerily and the tune suddenly turns into a krautrock charge. Motorcycle kicks off deceptively with a heavy grunge riff building up for about 40-seconds before the song abruptly shifts gears into a synth-led post-punk harmony, sounding something like Lush meets Syd Barrett era Pink floyd. Death Realms is perhaps the poppiest track, based around soaring shoegaze guitars and interwoven light vocal harmonies. Soft piano notes, occasional woozy whammy bar dives and a driving tom-tom beat solidify its hooks. Spiders is a creepy-crawly guitar riff and counterpoint keys, while Moonlit explores prog-structures with a shredding guitar solo crescendo. The penultimate track, Lullaby is exactly that, a lulling, expansive tune exemplifying Blackwater Holylight’s genre smashing sound as it subtly moves across a vast sonic landscape atop a hypnotic 6/8 beat and repetitive 3-note motif. Throughout the album, their songs shirk traditional verse-chorus-verse structure in favour of fluid, serpentine compositions that move with commanding grace.

Veils of Winter

Music US

Discover Veils of Winter by BlackWater HolyLight on Riding Easy Records. Available in LP and CD formats, including Rough Trade Exclusive. A captivating blend of heavy, psychedelic, and melodic sounds that defy traditional structures.