{"id":73367,"date":"2018-11-29T15:00:42","date_gmt":"2018-11-29T15:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/?p=73367"},"modified":"2018-11-28T19:13:36","modified_gmt":"2018-11-28T19:13:36","slug":"review-ravenface-breathe-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/review-ravenface-breathe-again\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Ravenface &#8211; Breathe Again"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Album-Art.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-73368 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/Album-Art.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"301\" height=\"301\" title=\"\"><\/a>After re-releasing their 2012 album \u2019<em>Divided Kingdom\u2019<\/em> last year,\u00a0<strong>Ravenface<\/strong> return with their first new material in five years. \u2018<em>Breathe Again<\/em>\u2019 sees them slipping into the same sonic sphere as Tesseract but unfortunately, it isn\u2019t quite the comeback they hoped.<\/p>\n<p>As the twinkling synths open \u2018<em>Breathe Again<\/em>\u2019, we\u2019re presented with the band\u2019s new sound. The aggressive vocals are gone, but James Denton\u2019s warm singing voice remains likeable.\u00a0 We also greet new lead guitarist Leah Woodward (of Aliases) as her solo rips across the song. Throughout the album, her presence is keenly felt. Notably, her trademark frantic fret tapping adds slickness and texture to proceedings. Yet, metal elements are scattered like garnish\u00a0rather than providing the album\u2019s meat.<\/p>\n<p>Built around whirling, pinwheeling synths, the album has a saturated and abstract feel. Other instruments are strangled or smothered, creating an uneven and indistinct soundscape. \u00a0A trait exacerbated by the band\u2019s hesitant approach, almost as though different producers created the songs without a blueprint of what the overall sound should be. Compare to the specific, focused albums of Periphery or Skyharbor and \u2018<em>Breathe Again<\/em>\u2019 is strikingly diffused.<\/p>\n<p>While the album is undermined by inconsistencies, at times you catch glimpses of what it could have been. \u2018<em>In Time, In Sight<\/em>\u2019 excellently interweaves guitars with a synth-heavy structure. \u2018<em>Colder<\/em>\u2019 gets the balance right and is an absolute highlight with its powerful vocal and less cluttered sound.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"RAVENFACE - Breathe Again (Official Video)\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/-0qK9Hrd7FA?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1&#038;origin=https:\/\/alreadyheard.com\/staging\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The overall feeling of listlessness is heightened on songs such as \u2018<em>Fighters<\/em>\u2019 by trite generic production tricks. It\u2019s as though every plug-in from the Pro Tools \u2018cool kids metal production pack\u2019 has been liberally applied, sending big swishy sounds trampling across the band\u2019s work, rendering it muddy and unsatisfying.\u00a0 Similarly, \u2018<em>Gasoline<\/em>\u2019 features vocal judders that spoil the track\u2019s immersion and takes away from the emotion of Denton\u2019s delivery. On a record with so much atmosphere, it\u2019s jarring.<\/p>\n<p>Though not without merits, this is a somnambulist, unsatisfying record drifting on a sea of questionable production values.<\/p>\n<p>2.5\/5<\/p>\n<p>\u2018<em>Breathe Again<\/em>\u2019 by\u00a0<strong>Ravenface<\/strong> is released on 30th\u00a0November.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Ravenface <\/strong>links:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RavenFace_Band\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Twitter<\/a> |\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ravenfaceuk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Facebook<\/a> |\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/ravenface_official\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Instagram<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Words by Ian Kenworthy (<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/WhisperingSand\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@WhisperingSand<\/a>)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;\u2018Breathe Again\u2019 isn\u2019t quite the comeback Ravenface would have hoped for.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":73368,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[4103,15621,16294],"class_list":["post-73367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-album-reviews","tag-breathe-again","tag-ian-kenworthy","tag-ravenface"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - 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