Album Review: Lilac Lungs – Eventide

Ryan May 9, 2017 218 Comments 287 views 0 likes

To coincide with the vast number of musical genres, there’s also a vast amount of different listening styles. For example, there’s the casual listener who will listen to music when it’s on the radio or more so as background noise, the singular type who listens to one particular genre with a dedicated interest. The coup de grace of music consumers are the ones who attempt to listen to almost, if not everything, taking in all the styles, sounds and emotions that different genres can provide. As people enter that realm of consumption, you tend to look at music with a different perspective as it becomes clear that it’s a multi-tooled instrument and driver that conveys not just a massive array of sounds, but also emotions. That’s the beautiful thing about the medium – it’s filled with endless possibilities that differentiate on a person to person, artist to artist basis. Detroit indie rockers Lilac Lungs showcase some of those possibilities on their debut album, Eventide as the 10-track release is a rollercoaster of emotions and haunting sounds.

[tw-toggle title=”About Lilac Lungs”]
Genre: Indie Rock | Pop
Label: Unsigned
Release: May 12, 2017
Connect: Facebook | Twitter
Purchase: iTunes | Google Play
[/tw-toggle]

Lilac Lungs aren’t a typical band and that becomes more apparent from the opening track on Eventide as “Welcome to the Fallout” isn’t the typical album opener that many bands utilize. Instead, it’s a swift, relatively somber and somewhat grim track that highlights frontwoman Emily Torres’ vocals which drive the song forward over the instrumentation. This approach continues over to the next track and lead single, “Next to Nothing”, which is filled with haunting synths, a pulsating bassline, brief guitar riffs and tender vocals that tug at listeners’ heartstrings. It’s on track three where Eventide starts to reveal more of what it contains as “Uh-Oh” showcases a more pop-laden side of Lilac Lungs with its fluttery, happy sound. “Fallen for Your Face” sees the reintroduction of budding synths that build underneath the verses while exploding with the chorus. It gives off a very retro feeling to the sound which eventually incorporates with a simplistic drum pattern and electric guitar riff that when coupled with Emily’s soaring vocals make for an amazing musical arrangement.

LILAC LUNGS: Next to Nothing (Official Video)

LILAC LUNGS official video for ‘Next to Nothing”. This is the first single from our debut full length album. Get it on… iTunes: http://hyperurl.co/nexttonothing-iTunes Google Play: http://hyperurl.co/nexttonothing-GPlay Amazon: http://hyperurl.co/nexttonothing-Amazon Spotify: http://hyperurl.co/nexttonothing-Sptfy Find our social media at… Site: http://www.lilaclungs.com Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lilaclungs Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/lilaclungsband Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/lilaclungs YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC71X…

At the halfway point of Eventide, “Us vs. Ourselves” continues the differentiating atmospheric sound with full force as synthesizers once again are the driving force musically. They eventually fall to the wayside, leaving Emily with an ambient backing orchestral arrangement multiple times before exploding with a wall of sound. “Guard Dog” and the following “Fine” see Lilac Lungs return to an airier, pop style with a more upbeat approach. Both tracks have a fluttery style to them instrumentally with “Guard Dog” being the more subdued of the two as “Fine” takes a more carefree, dance-y approach. The last three tracks see Lilac Lungs began to blend the somber, atmospheric sound they created on the first half of the album with the faster paced style that became more entrenched in the second half. “Circle” builds off of electric guitars, piano ballads before exploding on the chorus, while “All I Have” spends the first two minutes creating an atmosphere for the listener before kicking it up a notch. Closing out the album is “Young Warrior” which at first relies on the synthesized sounds before tearing down its self-created and introducing every element present on the record, ending with vocalized harmonies and a piano melody.

Lilac Lungs had two important goals when it came to crafting their debut album; convey different emotions through the lyrics and the music that people can connect with and evoke a feeling of strength, creating safe space within the music. Both of these goals were achieved beautifully and coupled with a focus on letting the vocals shine over the music, act as the true driving force to make Eventide not only a rollercoaster of emotions and musical conveyance, but also result in a unique album that isn’t like most of what modern day music is pushing out. Simply put, Eventide deserves a listen from everyone, if not for its distinctly different approach to how indie and pop music can sound, for its message and emotion evoking lyrics that leave a lasting reminder that no one is alone in this world.