“I could disappear.”
Graywave releases their sophomore EP, Rebirth, into a shoegaze genre that is seeing its influence and sound spread further than it ever has. Jess Webberley, who fronts the solo project, began her work creating metal music and later transitioned to the shoegaze genre. Akin to what many bands have done over the past few years; hardcore unit Hundredth made the surprising switch with RARE in 2017, Deafheaven fully embracing the sound with Infinite Granite and most notably Loathe blowing listeners away with tracks “Two Way Mirror” and “Is It Really You?“. With festival and tour line-ups that are traditionally packed to the rafters with metalcore and hardcore, shoegaze groups such as Slow Crush and Nothing have comfortably found their place. And with Rebirth, Graywave deserves to sit alongside such names as a standout performer in the genre.
At first, the most notable shift is the brooding landscape that Rebirth opens up with its sound, there are no gentle cuts that appeared on previous EP Planetary Shift. Droning clean guitars fill the atmosphere on tracks such as “Red” and “Rebirth“, which at times are paced exquisitely with the backing bass. Here too is where the studio recorded drums show their presence too, among the reverb and distortion, the acoustic sound aligns succinctly with everything around it. With this not every hit on the toms or snare is directly at the front, they move up and down the mix and it makes for a satisfying listen. There is a ruthlessness to Rebirth too, moments on “Red” that have a strum to them that contains more vigour than found in some alt rock, or even in certain metalcore bands.
Within all of this, there are moments of beauty contained within Rebirth. It’s potentially where the EP reaches its heights too, on track “Exoplanet” which sees the EP slow down on its midpoint, there is something deeply special about it. Webberley’s soaring vocal performance, especially on the chorus, truly makes the track what it is. Blending with the reverb soaked pitched chords, it creates an ethereal moment that lifts the entire track. These tones return in Rebirth’s closing track, aptly named, “Closer“. There is a drifting atmosphere to the track, akin to staring up at the stars on a clear night when one sees their thoughts wander away. The main riff here too, that act as the tracks spine, is gorgeous and beckons the ear in.
With Rebirth, Jess Webberley has made an EP that deserves the time and investment to explore and experience. Despite its five tracks and 20 minute run time, there is a depth and obtuseness that outshines many full-lengths twice its size. Adding to this that for the most part, this is a solo project, makes it even more impressive. With each listen and as the veins of each track are explored, it’s difficult not to find full escapism in moments on “Exoplanet” or be entranced by the heavy audio spectres of “Rebirth“. With this body of work, this will hopefully be the start of Graywave reaching the forefront of the genre and become a firm staple to many.
9/10
Rebirth is out this Friday, June 24th via Church Roads Records can be pre-ordered here.