Speaking In Shadows are another band in the ever growing British rock industry. These guys take on the lighter side of the scene, with bands like You Me At Six and Blitz Kids for company.
The opening track, ‘Splinters‘, starts things off with a great guitar riff, the notes plucked resonating through your speakers before the full band kicks in. When the vocals join, there is a hint of Brian Molko from Placebo‘s unique style in them. The guitar and general feel of the song is very similar to that of Blitz Kids with a big sound to it that wouldn’t be out of place at an arena.
We see a slightly heavier side to Speaking In Shadows with the next song, as the guitars take on a lower pitch and vocalist Adam Smith‘s voice takes on a rougher edge, similar to James Veck-Gilodi of Deaf Havana. This darker side of his voice sticks around for the next track, despite the softer guitar. Everything about the chorus’ shares a likeness with Young Guns, so it’s a surprise to hear screamed vocals in the bridge, yet somehow it works.
The next two tracks couldn’t be more contrasting. ‘Breaking Silence‘ is a full, loud song, bringing together everything we’ve heard so far. ‘Moths‘ however, strips everything back to an acoustic track, until the moment we would expect to hear a bridge where the rest of the band kicks back in. The track is full with the passion and emotion and the acoustic perfectly translates.
The EP closes with the title track which brings us back to great repetitive riffs, with even a little bass solo between the introduction and the main body of the song. Yet again, this song brings in an element we haven’t yet heard in this collection of songs, with an acapella bridge introducing a gang style vocal. At the end of the track these vocals layer up with Adam‘s singing from earlier in the track, crescendoing to the abrupt ending; a great way to leave the EP.
It’s clear Speaking In Shadows have a lot of potential, but it’s not quite as clear where they are going. Every track here feels very different from the last, proving the diversity and talent of the band, but making it hard to find the definition people need with a young band like this. We’re definitely going to look out for these guys in the future to see what direction they take their music in.
