We have waxed very positively about Vesuvian on this blog this past year: I raved about their first 2026 single “Cassandra (The Ox is on My Tongue)”, and Greg gave their next track “Fortunate Death” high marks. Now I’ve got the pleasure of writing about the third and final single from the band’s upcoming self-titled album.
“Hecate in the Highlands” once again leans on Vesuvian’s love for mythology and the classics, singing from the point of view of the Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft, and spirits. It also draws a little bit on Shakespeare, as the titular “Highlands” allude to Scotland, which connect to the Weird Sisters of Macbeth. Hecate is a triune goddess who – though an only child – consists of three “sisters”: The Maiden, the Mother, and the Crone. In “Hecate in the Highlands”, the band doesn’t make it clear which of those three sisters is singing. However, the other two have gone away, leaving the remaining one to grow old and lonely without them.
Joey DeGrado’s usually snarling voice takes on a more disaffected tone as the lonely narrator of the track, taking inspiration from Craig Finn or Patrick Stickles in his ability to project what I call “melodic storytelling.” There is no melody to the verse, but you can hear music in DeGrado’s words, even as he acts as the desolate and unfortunately immortal sister who finds no joy now that her sisters have gone. It’s a rollicking and cathartic song from an unusual point of view, with a chorus that begs for a sing-along in a live setting: “And my two sisters, long since gone away / Just me in the highlands in the cold light of day.”
This last preview of what’s to come on Vesuvian’s self-titled album makes me more excited for its release on May 29th, which is quite soon. I expect we’ll have a lot more to say about the band then, but for right now, please enjoy “Hecate in the Highlands” below and let the spirit goddess move you.
Written by Will Sisskind
