Changing your singer? Not an easy job. For every Sammy Hagar, there’s a Gary Cherone, you might say.
When Alunah announced they were changing their vocalist from Soph Day to Siân Greenaway last year, there was a surprise.
A year on, the new line-up is ready to give the first fruits of their labours, with the four tracker “Amber And Gold”.
And it’s very much business as usual.
“…Gold” actually begins in somewhat understated fashion, with “Mangata” an ethereal, slow-building instrumental, with the briefest, eerie harmony from Greenaway, but with stunning lead work from Dave Day right at its heart.
The warmth of his sound has always been central to Alunah’s work and so it is here too. When the riffing gets heavier, doomier, if you will, on the title track, it is to introduce Greenaway’s voice.
It would be wrong to say there is too much of a direction change. Clearly, Greenaway brings a different dynamic and is slightly more rock in delivery, perhaps than what had gone before, but make no mistake about it, if you were a fan of Alunah before than there is no reason not to be once you’ve got to the swirling, mystical masterclass of “Awn”, which actually continues the upward trajectory the band had been on.
The last song is a cover. And I’ll be totally honest, when I saw they were doing “Wicked Game” my initial reaction was: “does anyone need yet another version of that?” However, credit to them for making it sound like the slab of doom they have made it sound like. And the new singers voice is superbly suited to it.
“Amber And Gold” is a timely reminder of the talents of Alunah. Of course, it is more too, and it amounts to their rebirth. There is more to come, surely, from a band that ranks as arguably Britain’s finest doom outfit. Their gold standard is to come, perhaps, but this is a fine return.
Rating 8/10
