Formed in early 2023, Erronaut draws inspiration from seventies rock, nineties grunge, stoner, and desert sounds, infusing them with a modern twist. Their music delves into themes of love, loss, and existential introspection, inviting listeners on an immersive journey through their debut album `The Space Inbetween` which is released this month. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Mikey Ward, fellow guitarist Peter Hunt, bassist Simon Wilson and drummer Sam Gates.
The album opens with `5.68º N 98.54º E` which seems to be the coordinates for the Straits of Malacca. The number itself is a brief sound segment with those coordinates verbally replicated in a remote fashion. The first track proper is `Way Down Below` a kind of doom-laden offering that draws you into it`s enticing almost hypnotic sound with some shimmering riffs on route.
`Lost Cause` has a delightfully heavy texture with vocals that kind of drift or float atop, a number that almost teases something to come but holds itself in check. It becomes a little grungier and more reflective at the halfway mark. The Latin phrase `Per Contra` or `on the other hand` is the title of the following number which has a kind of slow burn shimmer or shine about it with lyrics that kind of reveal a sense of frustration or exasperation about them. The last couple of minutes had a more mesmerising instrumental feel to the composition.
`Echoes Inside` runs at seventy-nine seconds in length and is a short haunting spectral guitar reverberation. I`m not sure what the significance of the title of `1202` but the 1202 Angel number comes as a sign to remind yourself that it is in your spirit to thrive, to be resilient, and to come out on top. That aside this submission does have a sense of resilience or defiance which is mirrored in the, at times, almost gentle melodic auditory tones.
`Underneath the Sun` for me, had a delightfully trace-like colour which really drew me in. I must admit that `Dark Horizon` didn`t have the gloomy perspective its name suggested but was an absorbing slice of nigh on pensive, contemplative heavy rock.
The album closes with `Beyond Sleep Pt .1 The Insomnia` and `Beyond Sleep Pt. 2 The Subconscious Decompression`. The former a pounding intense soundscape with a nigh on roar for relief from sleeplessness , while the latter is lighter and possibly reflects that perception or sense of relaxation, that sense of liberation from the previous frustration and exasperation.
`The Space Inbetween` is a quite absorbing listen with themes that were probably beyond my comprehension at times but I really loved it`s doom, sludge, and stoner vibe throughout with its huge fuzzy and stirring riffs.
I`m sure you will to.
Rating 8.5/10
