EP
JEKYLL
The Whispering Gallery
March 13 2020 (Fierce Panda)
8/10
Words: Steve Willcox
This new EP from Blackpool band JEKYLL takes its title from the poem “
'In A Whispering Gallery', written by Victorian realist Thomas Hardy; its unworldly prose of feeling as though you're talking to God.
The 19 minutes of the five tracks here, however, are a little more prosaic. Opening with ‘The Escapist’, its beat seems to be chasing you into the arms of vocalist Joel Foster while he tries to save you, but ultimately fails as he watches you slowly crumble away. ‘I Do What I Can' fields a catchy bass hook with an 80s New Romantic twist, whilst keeping the synth to a minimum. The guitars soar, drums thunder and crash into in a rich expressive crescendo on ‘Marionette’, and, if you close your eyes, you could almost imagine the haunting vocals belonged to Thom Yorke. ‘Echoes (Uncut)' starts simply enough but then turns up the guitar riff, as it powers through into a stadium filling mid-section.
There’s something about the sub-five minutes of closer ‘Midnight Swim’ that with its swirling synths and piano keys, sets it apart. You can really feel Foster’s pain, as his vocals soar across “Well, what’s the point in sleep / if heartache exists in mind-games/ and when the darkness comes creeping in/ the sky starts whispering."
A deep, rich and captivating effort from the seaside rockers.
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