’…a bold statement piece, one that is indicative of a band that has a real potential to do something truly special…’
Is it a bird? Is it a cult? No, it’s Michigan based screamo outfit Heavenly Blue! Well, after reading their Spotify bio, it might actually be a cult, but that’s besides the point.
Built with an air of the esoteric, Heavenly Blue (sometimes referred to as Heavenly Blue INTL on some streaming services) are a seven-piece outfit that have just dropped their debut record, ‘We Have The Answer’. Arriving somewhere at the crossroads of scramz, noise, post-hardcore, and hardcore punk, the band have a sound that can be difficult to acclimatise to, yet also can be deeply rewarding to experience.
From the get-go, this is a cacophonous, cataclysmic listen that crashes down around the listener with a tidal wave of sonic fury. The mixing is peculiar; every sound feels like it has clawed its way up from hell and is drilling its way directly into your eardrum, the layers of guitars and vocals densely compacted into a claustrophobic space that, at first, may seem a little overwhelming. Yet, permit yourself time to sit with the record, and this artistic choice feels more and more integral and illuminating, turning these tracks into infinitely desperate, frenzied prayers and gospels.
The title track is a musical apocalypse, with frantic bursts of percussion that stab out at the listener at moments that feel ever so slightly rhythmically estranged from the rest of the track. The opening riff is thunderous is nature, roiling and evolving with a perpetual anger during the brisk span of this track.
‘Certain Distance’ packs spiralling guitar passages that cut through the walls of furious noise with a progressive flair; this elevates the track with a frenzied sense of grandiose drama. These moments of clear melody are used sparingly on the record, ensuring that when they do appear, they act as a wonderful moment of contrast to the walls of aggressive noise.
The dual vocals of the record make for a huge part of the album’s identity, utilised almost more-so as another instrument in the arrangement, as opposed to a clear melodic focus. Juno Parsons and Mel Caren juxtapose one another perfectly, with the high pitched, inhuman screams of one contrasted wonderfully with the more grounded, shouted-word approach of the other. The pair exist almost as epithets of anger and desperation, aggression and vulnerability, circling one another in a destructive spiral within the cyclone of instrumental violence.
That isn’t to say that the pair have ignored lyricism here. Whilst it can be difficult to sometimes decipher the lyrics of the album when listener, a cursory glance at their album notes reveals some truly incredible lines. Take the opening lines of opening track ‘Davos’ for example: ‘You forgot your dignity when you walked off to better things, or what they’re calling it these days.’
‘Glass So Clear’ opens up with the visceral bars ‘Waves roll over, salt permeates your wounds/Who said recovery would be comfortable?’, whilst ‘Pando’ delivers deeply evocative lines such as ‘I’ve gotta stop talking to brick walls like they’ll give back/In heaven is everyone honest?’. It’s a goldmine of abstract yet elegant lyricism that challenges the listener to listen, think, listen again, think again. This is all very intentional; the band have stated that the title of the album is even supposed to raise questions. Who is ‘we’? Is this an album an escape, an indoctrination, a rallying-cry, a farewell?
The album comes to a suitably pummelling end with the one-two punch of ‘Heat Death Parade’ and ‘All Of The Pieces Break’, the former of which showcasing some of the finest instrumental musicianship across the span of this record. No momentum is lost whatsoever, hurtling the listener from point A to B, caring little of what musical devastation it creates. As previously mentioned, yes, it can be a little overwhelming to listen to; this is a disorientating, dizzying record that seeks at no point to be a comfortable and easy listen.
That, however, is key to its success. ‘We Have The Answer’ is a great modern screamo record that pushes the genre in some interesting directions, whilst staying true to the core tenets of the screamo scene. Heavenly Blue’s debut record is a bold statement piece, one that is indicative of a band that has a real potential to do something truly special.
You may not have the Answer just yet, but this record has you asking all the right questions.
Rating: 77/100 – Mostly Very Good
For Fans Of: Frail Body, Birds in Row, Touché Amoré, La Dispute, Deafheaven
Physical copies of the album are available to purchase here.
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