Silk is the new project from Virgins’ guitarist/songwriter, Michael Smyth.
Previous singles were recorded as experiments for Michael to hone his engineering and mixing skills.
The new single ‘July’ is the first song written specifically for this project.
The calm waters of the intro quickly become a raging sea as the song explodes into action.
Wailing guitars scream and bend, enveloping us in layers of distortion. There is a lot of melody here, too, though, and things start to reveal themselves the more we listen.
The bass pounds through the track, supplying a steady pulse, the meaty snare snapping at its heels.
Main vocal melodies repeat like a mantra, a single high note often held at the end of a phrase, conveying a feeling of anguish. A slight dissonance creeps in at times, heightening a sense of unease.
Lyrics are just out of reach (as you might expect from a classic shoegaze track). Michael writes, “I constantly feel like I am rushing towards the inevitable infinite oblivion”. He tells us that in this track, he sings of “subtle betrayals”. That’s perhaps the biggest clue we have as to the song’s subject matter.
Delicate textures float above the turbulence below, and the song comes to a crashing end. We can finally catch our breath as the final death throes of the guitar ring out – one final melody to bring us back down to earth.
July is out now.
Written by Grubby
