ALBUM REVIEW: Modern Life Is Lonely – Holding Absence
HOLDING ABSENCE is a band that’s always stood apart from their peers because of their taste. They’re a bit too mature for most alternative rock and emo-pop acts, but a bit too melodic and emotional for the heavier acts in post-hardcore. As such, they’ve spent the last ten years or so straddling the line, combining massive radio-ready choruses with sharp writing and an ear for production. Lead singer and songwriter Lucas Woodland is the band’s star. his voice soars into the stratosphere and back down as needed, providing a singular supernova you can’t turn away from, but guitarist Scott Carey and bassist Benjamin Elliot are no slouches. A band with such a powerhouse of a vocalist could easily just rely on open chords and simple drumming, but HOLDING ABSENCE have shown time and time again that they like to provide tasteful switch-ups in the drumming, syncopating of guitar riffs, and slower moments that let the bass and twinkling lead guitars shine. The band’s last three records have been personal journals of depression and self-discovery. On Modern Life Is Lonely, they turn their focus outwards towards the world and the technology that has us trapped in a perpetual state of simultaneous connection and separation.
From the outset, it’s clear that the band is adventuring new directions with their sound. Outside of the occasional keyboard line, HOLDING ABSENCE have generally maintained an organic palette throughout their career, but they wholeheartedly (and fittingly) embrace electronics and synthetic textures for this record. The clearest influence on this record is, surprisingly, PORTER ROBINSON, especially his 2021 record Nurture. Modern Life Is Lonely is replete with synthesisers, pitched-up and digitised vocals, nature samples, and even occasional forays into drum and bass territory. What makes this sonic shift interesting is not that it happened at all, but how good it sounds. Electronic sounds have been used by rock and metal bands for years, but in many cases, especially within mainstream hard rock, these combinations are cheap grabs for pop radio that often sound lazy and underdeveloped. These genre blends have always felt very cynical; rather than a genuine love for other sounds, these incorporations of electronic music and modern production feel like dives for radio attention or frivolous “experimentation”. Conversely, you get the sense that HOLDING ABSENCE actually like the musicians they’re pulling from. The electronic elements are a breath of fresh air in the band’s repertoire, but they don’t replace the charm and solid songwriting the band has. It’s a nice layer of texture to their sound rather than a suffocating sound palette that they don’t know what to do with.
The core of HOLDING ABSENCE is still as strong as ever. Woodland still lands stunning and catchy choruses across the record, and the band meets his energy on every turn. Opener Re-Animate is easily the most electronic song on the record, but when the chorus bursts in a euphoric rush, it’s like a familiar face appearing across a crowded room. Lucid Love sports one of the most impressive vocal feats and the drums and guitars shift sporadically from one energetic rhythm to another. The title track is a bit more laid-back as it begins but concludes with an outpouring of emotion in a stormy breakdown. The heavier moments are just as tasteful as the lighter ones with HOLDING ABSENCE – they only utilise screaming and breakdowns when the song’s emotions call for it, and that makes them hit all the harder- a refreshing alternative to many Octane-core bands that basically write a pop rock song with a metalcore mosh section jammed into the bridge.
Lead single Whisper of A Dream is one of the band’s best tracks, with a classically melodramatic HOLDING ABSENCE hook (“Being a human’s more of a burden than I was hoping”) that the band sells with yet another chorus for the books. The highlight is the end of the track where the softly sung passage from the song’s intro is reprised with Woodland’s sawtoothed belt that morphs into a scream on, appropriately, the word “scream”. There’s wonderfully genuine love songs like Heaven and Take Me With You as well as journeys into existentialism like the title track and the underlying current of electronic unease that permeates the whole album.
The band have always had a knack for a strong conclusion, and Modern Life Is Lonely is no exception. Closer Kyoto Snow builds slowly from faint piano chords and a pulsating beat and concludes with a tidal wave of dazzling guitars as Woodland’s voice pierces through like a golden arrow, “I will find you and love you in every lifetime”. The stuttering electronics that intercut the guitars contribute to the widescreen feel.
There aren’t too many gripes to have with this album. Perhaps Reflection and Scorched Earth can feel a bit on the generic side, and the interludes don’t feel like much more than window dressing, but these are more nitpicks than anything. HOLDING ABSENCE continues to be a beacon of joy and empathy in the modern rock scene, and the new directions they pursue here shows that they’re still a wellspring of wonderful songs. Modern life certainly can be lonely, but we’re glad we have this band and their music to help us feel a little less alone.
Rating: 8/10
Modern Life Is Lonely is out now via Sumerian Records.
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