Developed around the close friendship of Chrisy Hurn-Morrison (vocals/guitar) and Nim Agalawatte (bass/keyboards,) Hamilton four-piece Basement Revolver have long been crafting weighty, heartfelt tracks which ask searching questions with cathartic energy. As we put it in a review of 2018’s Heavy Eyes: [Basement Revolver] play a double game of big and small, switching from quiet personal sentiment to big bombastic broadcast, often within the same song.”
With Jonathan Malström returning on guitar and Levi Kertesz joining on drums, Basement Revolver used the past year to work on a brand new record, Embody. Continuing the exploration of themes such as faith, identity and mental illness seen on Wax and Digital, the album finds the band more forthright than ever. As though previous releases have laid the foundations for a newfound confidence. A willingness to confront the intricacies of modern life with a newfound steel and depth.
Lead single ‘Skin’ is an indication of what this sounds like. Revolving around anxieties related to body image, the track opens with needling drone before settling into its smouldering rhythm, and it is this passage from persistent dread to widescreen spaciousness which marks the spirit of the song. The confessional uncertainty of previous Basement Revolver tracks is still evident, but there is a sense of taking a step further. Vulnerability not only voiced but interrogated. Held up to a light and then shed with an almost ritualistic practice, as captured in the video by Steph Montani.
I want to feel at home
In my skin, in my skin.
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‘Skin’ is out now and available from the Basement Revolver Bandcamp page. Stay tuned for more information on Embody.
Photo by Stephanie Montani