ALBUM REVIEW: A Guide For Apparitions – Air Drawn Dagger

Electronics and emo meets angsty pop on AIR DRAWN DAGGER’s debut album A Guide For Apparitions. The Sheffield trio have been building up their own fanbase for several years now through releasing a collection of EPs and singles, along with constant touring and festival appearances where they’ve shared stages with the likes of LAKE MALICE and DREAM STATE.

When it comes to AIR DRAWN DAGGER’s music, there are very few rules with their catalogue being described as something multi-genre with rock at the heart of everything, a fact no different when it comes to their debut album. This is established with intro track, Hymn Of The Hag, that opens with the sound of rain alongside the background noises of church bells and dark synths that slowly swell in volume as an acoustic guitar and hymn-like vocals come in, setting the scene of being somewhere grim and medieval. We then go straight into Sanctifound where the acoustic guitar makes a more prominent return before the full band comes in creating a composition of the synth-punk variety, tinged with some industrial rock, and further elevated with fast and exciting vocals that tell a story of trying to exist in a world that doesn’t understand you.

An ongoing theme with this record is the references to all things supernatural and fantasy, from its song titles to the lyrics that tell a story in relation to all things mystical. In fact, AIR DRAWN DAGGER have described the album title as having multiple meanings, so, whether you’re someone who feels like they don’t fit in, misunderstood in this world, whether in terms of wishing you could be a witch in their own coven hidden away in nature, or just finding the right community of people who can love and understand you fully, this is the record for you.

In terms of the multi-genre paths that the album goes in, one moment we can enjoy compositions that bring in that nostalgic emo-pop-punk sounds of 2007 in Sweatin’ that will bring you back to those MySpace days with an all too classic style of uplifting sounds matched with raw, vulnerable lyrics; the next we can hear darker, grittier sounds in songs like Necromancer and Apparitions that bring in industrial rock elements that help bring out a more theatrical experience, with the latter track featuring the vocals of Tobi Duncan only helping to elevate the dark, heavier vibes of the song; all the way to trap-pop elements used in songs like MaidenMotherCrone, which also brings in heavier rock and punk sounds that bring to life the story within the lyrics of a woman scorned, yet she takes back the power, a perfect soundtrack if you’re someone who wishes to live out the witchcraft lifestyle.

AIR DRAWN DAGGER go above and beyond all expectations, and we know that there’s even more to come from this trio and their catalogue of songs that will break genre boundaries.

Rating: 8/10

A Guide For Apparitions is out now via Long Branch Records.

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