New Music: Another Sky - The Cracks

I've mentioned this before on the blog, but i think it's worth repeating.The common consensus that I see amongst music biz types and some industry publications is that bands are out of fashion and out of favour. But that misses a critical point – that some of those groups are still creating incredible music. It’s why when I named my Ones to Watch 2019 on the blog last year I purposefully started with two bands. Two bands that I firmly believe are making some of the most intoxicating and compelling music to be heard right now. 

One is Dublin’s Fontaines DC, a group that has recently released a brilliantly boisterous and lyrically poetic debut album called Dogrel.

The second is Another Sky, a four piece who seemed to fly under most people’s radars with their debut release Forget Yourself in March 2018 but have been beavering away ever since, slowly drawing attention to themselves with a string of bold and arresting songs that get better and better with each listen. They’ve now got to the point where they are able to announce a headline show at Village Underground in London on September 24th, a step up from the tiny toilet venues they’ve been slogging around which seem somewhat unbefitting of their superbly structured sound, a sound that can only be created by musicians who have already mastered their tools. 

Today saw another new song join Another Sky’s collection of powerful hymns. It’s called The Cracks and is taken from their upcoming EP Life Was Coming In Through The Blinds which is due for release on 14th June. Vocalist Catrin Vincent describes the track as “a response to a Leonard Cohen lyric, ‘the cracks, that’s how the light gets in’. The song is an ode to our generation, one that is more self-aware and being forced to have the difficult conversations that lead to progress and evolution. It’s inspired by the little girl fined by the council for setting up a lemonade stall, the kids suing the US government for global warming, teenagers like Greta Thunburg. It’s about our generation’s unique position of facing extinction.”.  Driven by a rhythmic force it once again showcases Catrin Vincent’s incredible voice; it jumps from solid rock to the heavens with what seems like ease. There’s a real sense of drama here, but it’s never overblown. 

If you get the chance to see Another Sky live grab it. It’s only in that environment you really get the opportunity to appreciate the atmospheres, textures and sheer bloody great musicianship that the band possesses. They’re already in the Breaking More Waves diary for Are You Listening festival in Reading (where they play in a church) on 27th April, Brighton’s Great Escape in May and most likely a few others as 2019 rolls on as well.

Out of fashion? Perhaps. But fashion is transient. This is music built to last. 

Another Sky - The Cracks