EP REVIEW: Amber & Gold – Alunah

ALUNAH are one of those bands that have gone from strength to strength over the course of the last decade since the release of their name change in 2008. With four excellent albums to their name, the band have already cemented their legacy as one of the most impressive doom metal acts to come out of the UK in the last couple of decades. Amber & Gold, which comes little over a year since the release of their fourth record Solennial, sees the band make a significant shift in their line up, with their iconic frontwoman Sophie Day leaving the band and being replaced by Siân Greenaway. This is the first piece of music the band have produced with Siân at the helm, and these four songs show that she is more than capable of filling the shoes left by Sophie.

Mangata, a brief, atmospheric track, acts as a great introduction to the record, with some primal, rhythmic drumming patterns, a solid, sludgy bass line, sparse and haunting guitars and some equally powerful and minimalist vocals, all of which set an epic and foreboding tone for the rest of the EP.

The records second, titular track, Amber & Gold, has a great, hypnotic rhythmic quality to it, with some solid melodic flourishes peppering the song. The steady cadence of the drums, and the droning, monolithic edge of the guitars and bass suck the listener in immediately, and create a great backdrop of Siân‘s vocals to take centre stage. The vocals possess the sort of ethereal quality that people have come to expect from ALUNAH, with a great, soulful undertone that helps bring the lyrics to life and acts as a great anchor around which to build the rest of the music. It’s a great track that showcases a brilliant, expansive sound and sets the bar quite high right out of the gate.

Awn is another great track with thick, crunching guitar tones, slick leads and powerful, grandiose vocals that give this song an awesome ambience that helps make the song sound incredible throughout. Again, there’s some brilliant guitar work, and the solo in particular adds a lot of hair-raising emotive weight to this song. It’s a groove-laden and eclectic piece of music, with a palpable, bleak atmosphere that complements the music amazingly, and proves to be the stand out track on this record.

The fourth and final song, a cover of Wicked Game, a slow, brooding and catchy track with lots of interesting guitar hooks, is a great climactic statement that boasts some of the best vocal performances on the whole EP. Siân s vocals are soaring and majestic, and carve through the deep, throbbing approach of the music to add a glorious note to proceedings. This is an utterly impressive way to bring the album to a close; it’s heavy, but not oppressively so, features some slick, memorable rhythms courtesy of a crushing bass line and tight, primitive drumming, has some great guitar work and, as mentioned before, some truly excellent vocals. It’s amazing from the first note to the last.

Amber & Gold is a brief but brilliant introduction to Siân Greenaway, and it does an excellent job of showcasing her vocal talents. It is hard to come into an established band and leave your mark on their music, and she’s shown that she’s more than capable of doing so. The music itself is, as always, brilliant, and strikes a great balance between granite thick doom and hazy, atmospheric stoner rock, creating plenty of great, catchy moments. With any luck, it won’t be long before this incarnation of ALUNAH hits the studio again to work on a new record, because if this EP is anything to go by, then the next album is going to be amazing.

Rating: 8/10

Amber & Gold is out now via self-release.

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