ALBUM REVIEW: Applause Of A Distant Crowd – VOLA

Danish progressive front runners VOLA return with their second album, Applause Of A Distant Crowd. Having received high praise and a lot of attention from their first record Inmazes, the band took on a different thematic approach for their next project. While their debut wrestled with inner demons and mental turmoil, Applause Of A Distant Crowd looks at our modern world as a whole; our relationships with each other, with technology, with society, with our bodies. As the band have proven their chops as technically adept in the heavier side of progressive metal and rock, how will they fair with the monumental themes it aspires to tackle?

Lifting off with We Are Thin Air, initially it brings in a very traditional rock sounding guitar riff, something of a curveball from the progressive metal stylings you might be expecting. The technicality is still definitely there, and the airiness of the keys over the deep tones of the guitar work makes this very much a VOLA track in its execution, if not immediately in it’s feel. Perhaps more of a grower for those looking for the heavier side of the bands sound, it’s impossible not to be taken in by the sway of the music.

A track many will have heard by now, Ghost really adds a lot of bounce and fun, which we haven’t really experienced yet with VOLA. It’s a positive sound, brimming with synth layers and little intricacies in the drum work, big choral moments and that masks the bittersweet lyrics. Singing reverb and echoing vocals really hone in on the ethereal track sentiments of the title. Even at this point we can see this is another deep dive into a complex subject matter done with subtly and finesse.

Switching thing up completely, Smartfriend pulls the band back into the twisted MESSUGGAH influenced sound of the previous album. Fuzzy, unusual time signatures, dirty riffs and quick lyrical delivery that amounts to a dirty and uncomfortable mindset. There’s a characterisation of modification, bodily mutilation, and heavy expectations to be something beautiful, all the while creating something less than pretty. As a package it’s back to what we expected of VOLA.

Ruby Pool flips back to the light and blissful notions of pianos and far out synth keys. A pretty bassline bobs through, while the track is carried through on light snares and pattering fills. It’s most definitely a lot more influenced by more traditional prog rock than the mind melding depth of the previous album. While changes in tone really mark a distinct change in mentality on this album, the sound and the focus that VOLA embed in the heart of their music creates something undeniably special.

A sharper start with Alien Shivers is the perfect blend of the ghostly tones with straining ambient synth tones pulling under the ticking drums, all make for a distant and mechanical feel; these sounds in themselves are alien. However, the more authentic sounds, the acoustic drums, the pure melody of the keys, the dynamic of rumbling guitars as something hard lurks below the melody, and clear, heartfelt vocals make for a real surreal experience. Asger Mygind’s writing is just as expressive, but much more dreamlike on this album than previous releases. There’s a constant distance from the song itself to the sound, and only when this intentional disconnect and the potency of the message hits you does the music come up to full clarity; It’s beautifully done.

The beginning of Vertigo is very much a lament, ambient sound filling the space around Mygind’s voice. So much emphasis is built around the simple melody on guitar, the delicate echo of keys and slight build up of ghostly voices, you barely notice the changes under the sense of loss and hollowness that this lovely track evokes.

Back into more distorted and layered sounds, where the guitars get a chance to bite a little harder, Still is big and bright. It’s an incredibly catchy tune, the build up again to the drop is incredibly satisfying. What’s reliving to hear is that no matter how deep and complex VOLA get, they still maintain accessibility through the musicality of their songs.

Title track Applause of A Distant Crowd has just as bouncy a riff that instantly captivates. This is probably one of the most hard-hitting lyrical songs, with its transparency about how we fade into obscurity through our shallow and vapid use of social media. The darker side of life is hidden under the warm and wistful tone of the guitars and the chilled-out beats. The poignancy of the words themselves even become hard to follow as would be alarming lines like “Straight to the extinction of your last” are delivered cheerfully, and tangle into other lyrics in a round. The eruption of a more full-bodied sound comes as a catharsis to this daydream world, beating some real life into the listener. That moment of realisation is all too soon hidden again under the comfortable layer of music we began with, as if the narrative constantly becomes lost to the alluring comfort of technology. All round, it’s a superficially good listen, and a pretty academically engaging metaphor.

The chugging Whaler feels a little more back to the dark tonal roots of VOLA. It’s a thick, punchy song, filled with violence and resolve. The swaying, sickly feeling of this song and its intent are a good juxtaposition to the passiveness of previous songs. It’s still in its own way a nightmare scape, but punctures with a sharper edge and it utterly excellent.

Green Screen Mother takes a sombre and contemplative tone, and a real feeling of emptiness sets in. Almost all piano, with very little singing at all. The sudden stillness after the onslaught of the majority of this album puts a pretty sobering note to end on. While listeners might have wanted a more positive end, it’s really the most striking way to complete this record; hopefully all the messages the band are trying to hit home will linger in the mind and echo into the way we observe our world.

Rather than one man’s struggles, Applause Of A Distant Crowd is anthology of various perspectives, all glimpsing into the hearts of strangers, while conveying a universe we are all too familiar with. It’s often dreamlike, and conveys a myriad of perceptions and emotions, both with its poetic lyrics and continually changing musical dynamics. As spectators and participants in this complex and frightening landscape, VOLA have clearly evolved to look beyond, and they’re very much inviting us to make that journey ourselves through this album, in the hopes we might see something of ourselves in it, and make a change.

Rating: 9/10

Applause Of A Distant Crowd is set for release October 12th via Mascot Records/Mascot Label Group.

For more information on VOLA like their official page on Facebook.