Search The Line of Best Fit
Search The Line of Best Fit

mewithoutYou celebrate 15 year legacy with sixth studio album Pale Horses

"Pale Horses"

Release date: 24 July 2015
7/10
Pale horses
21 July 2015, 10:24 Written by John Bell
Email
Fifteen years since their advent, Philadelphia’s revered mewithoutYou have returned with their sixth studio-album, Pale Horses. Different in texture to 2012’s Ten Stories - due in part to the production of Will Yip (Circa Survive, Title Fight) - the record catalogues personal torment and as such is incredibly heartfelt, but does at times border on overly sombre, lacking perhaps some of the diversity of the last release.

The album’s artwork by Russian painter Vasily Kafanov is interestingly reminiscent of Richard Hamilton’s illustrations of James Joyce’s modernist Magnus Opus Ulysses. Indeed, in a recent interview with MySpace, vocalist Aaron Weiss said that he found Joyce’s writing style “liberating”, and it’s not difficult to see his influence in Weiss’ lyrical style in Pale Horses, from the literary and religious allusions throughout, or the way Weiss’s collates concrete but seemingly disparate imagery to create a whole narrative in tracks such as “D-Minor”, for example.

In the same interview, Weiss commented on his focus on vocal melody, which has previously come second to lyrical content. Admittedly, this difference is subtle – Weiss’ almost spoken word style certainly remains - but certainly his vocal lines throughout Pale Horses are diverse, switching from soft whispers to raging shouts, as in the closing moments of album finisher “Rainbow Signs”.

A highlight however is “Lilac Queen”, where the croon “I’ll be long, long gone” follows the backing melody and cascades slowly and beautifully. For the moment though, Pale Horses stands as a testament that it will be a good while before brothers Weiss and co. are long gone.

Share article
Email

Get the Best Fit take on the week in music direct to your inbox every Friday

Read next