Tag: Evaporate

Review – Midas Fall – Evaporate – by Douglas Streatfield

Beautiful… an overused word in record reviews. But I think I’m going to start off with that one word. Beautiful.

Their website tells you that Midas Fall; “Combine elements of electronica, post-rock and alternative rock with progressive and gothic undertones” and also that; “Scottish duo Midas Fall have carved a distinctive and captivating sound, creating taut, shimmering soundscapes”

Post-rock can be a funny old genre to enjoy. Sometimes ponderous, overly serious and always brooding… preferably with an apocalyptic ending to the song.

Long, mainly instrumental pieces with the need to build and build and end in a crescendo of… well, something anyway. I’ve long enjoyed bands like Godspeed You! Black Emperor and A Silver Mt Zion, alongside bands like God Is An Astronaut and Secret Machines but sometimes it gets a little samey.

This album, though, seems more shimmering, goth beauty than post rock. As if The Sisters of Mercy had taken a chill pill, made an album with Liz Fraser and replaced most of the guitars with an aching violin. Beautifully produced, it really benefits from an eyes closed, near dark, undisturbed, loud listen to (doesn’t everything).

Opener Bruise Pusher is a nice start but leads to the title track – Evaporate. Imagine the vocal beauty of Christina Booth or Heather Findlay, with a Cocteau Twins shimmer set against a gentle, insistent violin, piano and drum backdrop that ebbs and flows. I kept listening to this track… so beautiful (there’s that word again).

A number of the tracks start in a similar vein but then build and build as layers of guitar and distortion get added to create a gorgeous sonic wall of sound until the end comes, a kind of emotional release from the journey.

In Sunny Landscapes…Chuckle Trousers himself couldn’t make a track sound less like its title. Again the vocals entrance; “I watched you fall, watched you wither, watched you wander”, Elizabeth Heaton sings as the violin gently breaks your heart again.

It all ends with Howling at the Clouds… now If Alcest quietened down a bit and made a record with Kate Bush…

What can I say? I wasn’t particularly aware of Midas Falls before this review – now I have much of what they have released and I particularly love this record. If beautiful, Gothic, shimmering and haunting loveliness is your thing, you must buy it. Like I said, quite beautiful.

Released 27th April 2018

Order ‘Evaporate’ from Monotreme Records here

MIDAS FALL SHARE ANIMATED VIDEO FOR ‘GLUE’

Scottish post-rock duo Midas Fall, who release their new album ‘Evaporate’ on 27th April, have shared a stunning animated video for ‘Glue’.

Directed and produced by Stefano Bertelli, with the set design by Riccardo Orlandi, the band describe the track as,’a song that exists in 4 parts and goes on a journey. Over the years time starts to blur the edges of the situation you are in up to the point that this becomes your normality and impossible to see an outside perspective. As the track unfolds the realisation is made and leads to further realisation of the difficulties associated with breaking free. Ultimately ending in chaos. The song gives a little nod to Ravels “Gaspard de la nuit” at the start before going in a more electronic direction, utilising sparseness, beats and synths.’

With this new album, Midas Fall have carved a distinctive and captivating sound, creating taut, shimmering soundscapes led by the hauntingly melancholic vocals of Elizabeth Heaton – a sound described as “powerful yet fragile, devastatingly beautiful and beautifully devastating” (The Founder Magazine).

Extremely emotive and vivid, ‘Evaporate’ is a deeply beautiful record – from the desperate, savage cacophony of ‘Bruise Pusher’ to the elegant ascension of ‘Sword to Shield’ – it conjures stunning soundscapes at every turn.

The album will be released worldwide by Monotreme Records on 27 April 2018 on CD and digital formats, as well as a limited pressing of 500 LPs on 180 g vinyl (200 black and 300 clear blue / black).

Pre-order the album now – http://monotremerecords.limitedrun.com/products/610709

The band are also set to tour the UK in May:
04/05 Evil Eye, Liverpool
05/05 Cavern, Exeter
06/05 The Vault, Leicester
08/05 The Star Inn, Guildford
09/05 Aatma, Manchester
10/05 Bannermans, Edinburgh
11/05 13th Note, Glasgow 

MIDAS FALL REVEAL LATEST TRACK ‘BRUISE PUSHER’ / ANNOUNCE UK TOUR DATES

Taken from forthcoming album ‘Evaporate’

Scottish duo Midas Fall (Elizabeth Heaton and Rowan Burn) release their fourth album, ‘Evaporate’, on 27 April.

“Bruise Pusher”, the opening track from the album, is a visceral display of ferocious beauty which alternates between Elizabeth Heaton’s delicate vocals and a savage cacophony of guitar, drums and synths, to create a disconcerting atmosphere.

“Bruise Pusher is about living in a volatile environment, constantly anticipating the underlying tension erupting into something hideous and unsettlingly familiar”, says Heaton. “The song started with just a simple piano melody, so to develop the track we used a lot of guitars with rumbling, saturated reverbs and gradually added heavy synths to create textured, expansive choruses.”

Produced and recorded by Elizabeth Heaton, ‘Evaporate’ shimmers with a dark, gothic grace, conjuring stunning soundscapes at every turn. The album will be released worldwide by Monotreme Records on April 27th on CD and digital formats, as well as a limited pressing of 500 LPs on 180-gram vinyl (200 black and 300 clear blue/black).

Pre-orders of the album are available from the Monotreme Records web shop: http://monotremerecords.limitedrun.com/products/610709-midas-fall-evaporate-album-cd-180g-vinyl-lp-or-digital-download-pre-order

The band have also announced UK tour dates for May to support the release of the album.
04/05 Evil Eye, Liverpool
 
05/05 Cavern, Exeter
 
06/05 The Vault, Leicester
 
08/05 The Star Inn, Guildford
 
09/05 Aatma, Manchester
 
10/05 Bannermans, Edinburgh
 
11/05 13th Note, Glasgow 
 

 

MIDAS FALL SHARE LATEST TRACK ‘SOVERAINE’

This April, Midas Fall, the Scottish duo comprised of Elizabeth Heaton and Rowan Burn — will release their fourth studio offering, ‘Evaporate.’

A visceral display of ferocious beauty straight from the desperate, savage cacophony of album opener “Bruise Pusher” to the heavenly crush of final track “Howling At The Clouds,” ‘Evaporate’ conjures stunning soundscapes at every turn. Captured in Argyll, Scotland, the album shimmers with a dark, gothic grace, delicate, and brutal in equal measure.

As a precursor to its release, the ethereal post-rock outfit have shared the poignant sounds of “Soveraine” for public feasting.

“Writing ‘Soveraine’ was like entering new territory for us and a big deviation from our last album,” notes Heaton of the weighty track. “It was born from an improvisation with just cello and vocals but turned into the type of song we had wanted to write for a long time. We wanted to show restraint with the guitars and drums and instead layer in instruments to culminate in a subtle but powerful and atmospheric ending. The song centers around the theme of resentment and trying and failing to let go.”

Midas Fall’s ‘Evaporate’ will be released worldwide by Monotreme Records on April 27th on CD and digital formats, as well as a limited pressing of 500 LPs on 180-gram vinyl (200 black and 300 clear blue/black).

Preorder the album now – http://monotremerecords.limitedrun.com/products/610709

Listen to the title track:

MIDAS FALL ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM AND SHARE TITLE TRACK ‘EVAPORATE’

Combining elements of electronica, post-rock and alternative rock with progressive and gothic undertones, Scottish duo Midas Fall have carved a distinctive and captivating sound, creating taut, shimmering soundscapes led by the hauntingly melancholic vocals of Elizabeth Heaton – a sound described as “powerful yet fragile, devastatingly beautiful and beautifully devastating” (The Founder Magazine).

‘Evaporate’, the fourth album from Scottish duo Midas Fall (Elizabeth Heaton and Rowan Burn), is a visceral display of ferocious beauty.

Recorded in Argyll, Scotland, the album shimmers with a dark, gothic grace, delicate and brutal in equal measure. The title-track sweeps through tidal waves of Elizabeth Heaton’s towering vocals atop progressive post-rock landscapes both menacing and affirming, whilst the cinematic build of ‘Lapsing’ and the heavenly crush of final track ‘Howling at the Clouds’ pull vigorously at the heart. ‘In Sunny Landscapes’ is a magical, magnificently radiant world of its own, elegantly bringing its title to life.

Title track ‘Evaporate’ is the first song to shared from the record which vocalist Elizabeth Heaton describes as ‘the first track written and my personal favourite from our upcoming album. Inspired by the dark winters and landscape of Iceland it tells a story of a mind in turmoil. It also demonstrates the new and exciting use of strings and synths in our music that you will hear more of on the album’’.

Extremely emotive and vivid, ‘Evaporate’ is a deeply beautiful record – from the desperate, savage cacophony of ‘Bruise Pusher’ to the elegant ascension of ‘Sword to Shield’ – it conjures stunning soundscapes at every turn.

The album will be released worldwide by Monotreme Records on 27 April 2018 on CD and digital formats, as well as a limited pressing of 500 LPs on 180 g vinyl (200 black and 300 clear blue / black).

n September 2015 Midas Fall released their third album ‘The Menagerie Inside’ (Monotreme Records), followed by a month-long European tour later in the year with Canadian musician Raised by Swans. The album, mastered by Ed Brooks (Pearl Jam, Death Cab for Cutie, Caspian), received excellent press around the world.

2014 Saw Midas Fall complete a Balkans mini-tour and begin work on their third album.

In April 2013 Midas Fall released their second album, ‘Wilderness’ (Monotreme), which they followed up with the release of 3-track EP. ‘Fluorescent Lights’, and a full UK and European tour. The band shared the stage with Chvrches, Deaf Havana, Her Name is Calla and label mates Sleepmakeswaves, in addition to headlining a show at the Norwich Sound and Vision festival.

2012 saw the band perform at Switzerland’s Deadline Festival, share the stage with label mates 65daysofstatic and Reigns in London at the Monotreme Records 10th Birthday party, perform headline slots in London and Budapest and support We Were Promised Jetpacks and Her Name is Calla.

2011 saw Midas Fall complete their first European tour, including a slot at Belgium’s Dunk! Festival, sold-out shows in Athens, Sofia, Glasgow, Manchester and London, play Germany’s Dark Spring Festival in addition to supporting label-mates Jeniferever and Kerrang! favourites Hawk Eyes. 2011 also saw the band secure endorsements from JHS Hornby (Fret King Guitars), Diago, DiPinto Guitars, Dava Picks and Lion Cajon Drums.

Their debut album ‘Eleven. Return and Revert’ had its worldwide release with Monotreme in April 2010, garnering numerous glowing reviews comparing them to the likes of Portishead and Explosions in the Sky.

Midas Fall previously supported Japanese post-rockers Mono and had their track ‘MovieScreens’ synced on BBC3’s Lip Service soundtrack – a soundtrack which charted in the UK’s top 20 and has since been released in Canada and Australia, increasing the bands overseas following.