Artist: Auger
Title: From Now On I
Genre: Electronic Rock
Release Date: 21st June 2019
Label: DarkTunes Music Group
Album Review
A relative newcomer, founded in 2017 with two albums behind them, this being the most recent. A hardworking band - they have toured with LORD OF THE LOST, STONEMAN, SOLAR FAKE, SULPHER, and MASSIVE EGO and appeared at some large European festivals such as W-Fest.
Well, what an interesting album. As I sat and listened to the first track the first musical comparison I initially thought of was WILLIAM CONTROL, but as the track progressed, I was washed with a wide array of musical similarities - THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE being another strong contender. As the album progressed, I quickly realised this bands sound wasn’t going to conform, it wasn’t going to magically sit easily onto a musical shelf, a specific genre. There are bits of FEAR FACTORY, GARY NUMAN and NINE INCH NAILS mixed with a liberal sprinkling of general EBM style melodies. Then, to add further surprise, some song structures TYPE O NEGATIVE would have been proud of.
There are elements that pop up that I can place, there are some keyboard arrangements that wouldn’t have surprised me if Billy Curry (ULTRAVOX) was the instigator (one of my favourite keyboard players) and drum passages that shout SISTERS OF MERCY. This makes for a fascinating and refreshing listening experience, somehow familiar, but totally different. Often when writing reviews it’s easy to list a few obvious influences, some similarities and the reader will get an idea of the overall sound. Not so here.
Kyle has a voice that is instantly appealing, a warm, deep timbre but with a contrastingly steely quality. Kieran is obviously a talented guitar player who is very versatile and able to convey enough feeling to back up the sentiment in Kyle’s voice - but well up for a blast of metal when required. The song writing and melodies are consistently of a quality not often exhibited in such a young band. Production, programming and the overall mix are sublime, somehow gelling the large melting pot of influences and styles together.
‘Be Careful’ is one of my favourite tracks on the album, some fine structures rivalling GARY NUMAN and even NIN, and those luxurious keyboard qualities are to die for, just building a huge soundscape that can’t ask for anything more. Other favourites for me are ‘When we are apart’ and the song writing of ‘Outcast Boy’ is frankly conceived from the hand / mind of an empathic genius.
Every now and then something very special comes along, for this reason I would highly recommend this album and band.
Tracklist
01. Don’t Look Back
02. From Now On I
03. I Declare
04. Find My Own Way Out
05. Do Not Wake
06. Be Careful
07. When We Are Apart
08. Alone
09. They’ll Find You
10. Feline
11. Outcast Boy
12. In Altum
Line-up
Kyle J Wilson - Producer, Vocals, Programmed By, Songwriter
Kieran Thornton - Songwriter, Guitar
Website
https://www.auger.band / https://www.facebook.com/AugerUK
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 8.5
Sound: 8.5
Total: 8.5 / 10
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