by Melting Palms
Head In The Clouds sounds like it could have drifted in from the early 90s, but Melting Palms aren’t interested in the wall-of-noise side of shoegaze. This is closer to Ride or Slowdive, where you can still hear the alternative rock underneath all the psychedelic guitars, layered vocals, and dreamy sounds.
There’s also something surprisingly hopeful underneath it all.
“Maze” is a great opener. The drums give the song a ton of momentum while the guitars bring in that noisy British alternative-rock sound. The vocals sound multitracked, softening some of the harder edges and pulling the song toward dream pop.
The maze itself feels like a metaphor for a relationship. Reaching the exit means reaching the end, but the narrator doesn’t seem particularly interested in escaping. They want to go back to the beginning, when two people were still figuring out the maze side by side.
“Stargazing” slows things down and gets considerably darker. The drums still give it a great pulse, but the vocals have more of a goth quality that makes me think of Siouxsie and the Banshees. It’s noisy and moody without completely disappearing into the haze.
What I love is how the song sounds like it should be dragging us further into the darkness while the lyrics seem to be trying to pull someone out of it.
“Echoes” moves closer to straight alternative rock and dream pop. There’s a great guitar riff that sweeps the whole song along, while the vocals are buried deeply enough to keep one foot planted in shoegaze.
The lyrics are considerably harder for me to untangle. I hear alienation, a feeling of being disconnected from the world around you and retreating further into yourself.
“Kaleidoscope” closes the EP by becoming more psychedelic and dreamy. The guitar stretches out, the drums slow down, and the vocals echo through everything rather than pushing to the front.
The lyrics are abstract again, but this time I hear people struggling together. Troubled minds still have some light inside them. People stumble and fall, but they can stand alongside each other when they do.
Head In The Clouds sounds melancholy, noisy, distant, and occasionally pretty dark, but the songs don’t surrender to any of it. Relationships end and people get lost. Minds become troubled. The world can feel alienating.
And yet, Melting Palms keeps finding reasons to believe something brighter is still out there.
Verdict: Good
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