CD Reviews

Moonlight Meadow - Moonlight Meadow

July 2019

Wave Records

Cold feelings in Moonlight Meadow's debut album!

Moonlight Meadow could be the soundtrack of some cold days. These days that you feel this coldness mostly because of this cold feelings, making your blood really icy. 

Moonlight Meadow is a post-punk, dark and cold wave trio from Poland. Formed in 2015 and consisting of Jakub Kozłowski (bass), Maciek Miroński (vocals, guitar) and Damian Stec (drums), they have been working on the album for some time now and this effort brought this beautiful release, in July 2019. With characteristics and influences that varies, from The Cure, Joy Division, Clan of Xymox, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Sisters of Mercy and Anathema. 

Starting with "Temptation", the atmosphere is being rapidly full of mysticism, with the sharpness of the intro guitar in the first minute, while the tempo turns to a cold wave beat. "An Old Dream And Love" retains the same sharp cold guitar riffs with a uniqueness in the melody and a dark bass and voice.

"Empty Waters" is a song which expresses a different darkness with the mystery and the hypnotism it emits with the down tempo and the deep vocals. Psychedelic in its own way. "City of Nights" goes in an upper tempo with more clear post-punk elements but still in cold lines. "Lost Dream" is going back to this slow dark rhythm which shadowing the atmosphere. One of the characteristics of Moonlight Meadow tends to be the monotone tempo which is followed by the sound of gentle sharp guitar and the melancholic vocals.

"Dance" is a more strong song with the guitar in the same character, a lot more powerful beat and rhythm that could definitely make it a dark dance hit. "Distant Memories" has this strong bass the lets the vocals crawl upon it, with the psychedelic darkness increased again on this one. In "Stranger" there is a reference to death rock elements and influences.

Same titled "Moonlight Meadow" is creating this grey area of mysticism. A dynamic bass line with a guitar arrangement, all reminding of some old school cold, post-punk riffs. "Distorted Mirror" is a hypnotic dark ballad. Melancholic rhythm and vocals. A different ending though, with a distortion in the guitars and drum line and sound taken from some Anathema riffs. Perhaps my favorite moment of the album. Dark, cold and gothic. Closing is the "Farewell to Childhood". A guitar melody which is exactly this. A farewell to innocence, watching a light fading as you are moving away. 

Moonlight Meadow's, same titled, debut album is a compact and strong beginning for the band from Poland. They keep this coldness in the sound all along the album. Great elements of darkness and mysticism onto a melancholic ambience. A promising debut album that will definitely bring even more developed sound and songs. Looking forward to their next steps.

 

Info:

https://www.facebook.com/moonlightmeadow/

https://waverecords.bandcamp.com/album/w088-moonlight-meadow-moonlight-meadow