Weyes Blood - And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow (Album Review)
Thursday, 17 November 2022
Written by Matty Pywell
Photo: Neil Krug
It has come to light that Weyes Blood’s superb 2019 album ‘Titanic Rising’ was the first in a trilogy. It served as a warning shot from a world going wrong, with ominous tides and people becoming more detached from each other than ever before.
Now, we have the sequel ‘And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow’, which sees those premonitions come to fruition. It is all too easy to say that there’s a lot wrong with society and the planet at large at the moment, but instead of preaching a list of mistakes, Natalie Mering paints a vivid picture of a deeply polarised humanity.
Tracks such as Children of the Empire feel like viewing a Renaissance painting of a city on fire. With only a few forlorn piano notes and washes of harp, she is able to conjure up imagery that is both terrifying and beautiful. There’s an urgency throughout the track as Mering suggests: “We don’t have time anymore to be afraid.”
What emerges is that we’re in a shared moment of discomfort made entirely by ourselves. One of the biggest losses found throughout ‘And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow’ is that of genuine connection, with the suggestion being that it is contributing to our own downfall.
That willingness for love in spite of chaos is best summarised in the romantic lyric, “The whole world is crumbling, oh baby let's dance in the sand.” It is a small glimmer of hope at the heart of uncertainty.
What Weyes Blood has done here is interpret our circumstances on an album that feels like a heartbreaking snapshot of where society is at right now. It is the work of a master songwriter who can pull together a range of sounds to create an album that is elegant, moving and enlightening.
Weyes Blood Upcoming Tour Dates are as follows:
Wed February 08 2023 - LONDON Roundhouse
Thu February 09 2023 - BRISTOL SWX
Fri February 10 2023 - GLASGOW Queen Margaret Union
Sun February 12 2023 - DUBLIN Vicar Street
Mon February 13 2023 - MANCHESTER O2 Ritz
Tue February 14 2023 - BRIGHTON Chalk
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