Previously The Arboretum have come over like a gothic electronica Pink Floyd – “Falls the Shadow“ and “Beyond This Horizon“ were unsettling and dense with grimy guitars and disconcerting electronic rhythms. Their new song “Light of The World” has moved on from this. The sound of the music is less dense now, the voice and drums are to the fore and keyboard washes are sat deep in the mix. There is a harder, dark urgency to this song that I’ve not heard in their music before.
We are launching our new single ‘Light of the World’ at The Old Con Club Malvern on Friday 15th July. See you there!
Posted by The Arboretum on Friday, 8 July 2022
The song starts with controlled feedback, like a shark hunting, scything through the water. The Killing Joke style drums kick in, but with a harder sound this time and the vocals are prominant in the mix with a tight harmony matching every phrase that’s sung, which makes them chime through the song: “Looking back into the past / The future dies so cold” they intone. That harder sound definitely not heralding a brighter outlook! The whole sound of the music is harder, sharper and less dense with the guitars sounding like the great John McGeoch (RIP – ed). The guitar solo washes through the song, loud and resonating with long sustained notes and the drums kick into double time afterwards, blowing me away as this carries the song forwards. A breakdown exposing the vocals precedes the rush to the end, leaving only an electronic pulsing and the swirling wind behind.
This is The Arboretum as more urgent… harder… but still keening in the darkness.
They will be playing at Nozstock this year along with a number of other dates across the UK including a release launch night for Light of the World at The Old Con Club in Malvern on the 15th July.
By: Eastside Jimmy
Artwork by Horacek (www.petrhoracek.com)