SINGLE REVIEW: Labyrinthine Oceans – Home

Forming back in late 2021, Newcastle-based four-piece Labyrinthine Oceans are well on their way to become stars of the UK underground rock scene. With a sound that defies clear boundaries, the outfit have already released one stunning single this year with ‘untitled’. However, the band may well have outdone themselves with their latest haunting affair, ‘home’.

Soft murmurs of reverb-soaked guitar echo from some distant unknown, as the track slowly rises up to greet the listener with a gently increasing power; at first through a rousing steadfastness, before accelerating towards a pained desperation which sees vocalist Julia O’Neill, usually a gentle yet beguiling presence, now tearing at the seams of her own melodies, her vocals almost verging on screams. It’s an eerie experience, which somehow manages to progress effortlessly from a somewhat nostalgic melancholy to a softly unsettling moment of emotional frenzy.

A good reason for this feeling is how the band have cleverly layered different instrumental elements. A prominent strummed bass line at one point gives some stability to the amorphous nature of the track, enabling the listener to grasp something tangible. The climax is marked with crashing percussion and bass lines that dive upwards that eschew some of that groove in place of pure emotional performance.

It’s a stunning track from a band that truly seems to approach music as an art form; ‘home’ is a song richly packed with glistening details, constructing an ethereal sonic realm around the listener, isolated from mundanity and reality, yet woven from a deep base humanity. Is it indie? Is it emo? Is it shoegaze? It’s Labyrinthine Oceans; the rest is for you to decide.

For Fans Of: Seahaven, Kate Bush, October Drift, My Bloody Valentine, Deftones

Follow the band on social media below:

Instagram // Spotify // Twitter