“This is one of those albums that makes more sense in the darkness.”
That was what I said about Really Good Terrible Things, the 2024 debut from North Sea Echoes. Two years later, Ray Alder and Jim Matheos have returned with How To Cast A Shadow and, if anything, the darkness has become deeper.
The band themselves said this record was “a bit heavier”, with several more songs featuring real drums, played by Dennis Leeflang. That is undoubtedly true, but “heavier” is a relative term here. North Sea Echoes remain masters of atmosphere, tension and the things left unsaid.
“A Time Of Innocence And Purpose” begins in haunting, cinematic fashion. It is dark without needing to overwhelm, immediately pulling you into the particular world North Sea Echoes create.
“Enjoy The View” is electronic and understated, almost lurking in the shadows, before it explodes to match the chaos at its heart. The contrast is startling, but typical of an album that understands precisely when to hold back and when to let everything go.
“Good Enough” comes from the gentler, more reflective end of their sound. It feels as though it is searching for something that may not exist, with Alder’s voice carrying every doubt.
The guitar work on “I’ll Leave A Light On” is sublime, but at its heart is a broken one. “I’ll leave a light on in case you come back,” sings Alder, and Matheos ensures that every note aches around him.
“All Fall Away” is driven by an unsettling drum pattern. These songs do not merely create an atmosphere; they suck you into their world so completely that everything beyond them seems to disappear.
“Revenge” possesses a distinctly 1980s electronic feel, yet its words speak of cleansing souls and permanent change. “I know I’ll never be the same again,” Alder admits, and that sense of transformation runs throughout the record.
By the time “Villains Or Saints” arrives, it is clear just how superbly judged How To Cast A Shadow is. “Maybe fate has a plan we don’t yet understand” might be the line at the heart of the whole album. These are songs about uncertainty, regret and the possibility that meaning may eventually reveal itself.
The harmonies on “What Is And What Was” take you even deeper. Against music so fragile that it seems it might break apart, there comes the reassurance that “you don’t have to face the dark on your own.” It is a beautiful moment precisely because it never strains for effect.
Then, almost without warning, a rock song breaks out. “All That Comes After” gives the album another surge of energy, showing exactly what the band meant when they promised something heavier.
The title track closes things with one final unsettling admission: “I always knew you could darken doorways, but still I let you in.” It is a perfect North Sea Echoes lyric, full of foreknowledge, weakness and consequences.
How To Cast A Shadow does not abandon the sound of the debut; it expands it. The darkness remains, but this time there are louder drums, heavier guitars and even greater emotional weight. It turns out those shadows still contain plenty of really good things.
Rating: 8/10
