South London duo Arliston return with another dose of their introspective, meaningful and melancholic songwriting in new single ‘Thawed’. Following on from ‘How In Heaven’, this release challenges what listeners might have come to expect from vocalist/instrumentalist Jack Ratcliffe and instrumentalist/producer George Hasbury. Instead this track offers a dark and twisty iteration of their signature spacey atmospherics. The drums shatter, the guitars slide, and the bassline rumbles throughout this slow-burning, or should we say slow-defrosting, track.
Although ‘Thawed’ is texturally diverse, the production is a cyclical composition with its looped melodies and steady beats that portrays the theme of being trapped in the same unhealthy behaviour. The forlorn tone suggests a perspective of being seemingly doomed to repeat these bad patterns over and over. As such, Ratcliffe‘s brooding performance embodies the character with vocal scratches, breaks and tonal inflections reflecting the frustration one can feel in this situation. It’s one of those tracks where you struggle to separate the character from the band, so convincingly is this narrative conveyed.
‘Thawed’ shows exactly what this duo is capable of when they push the boundaries of their sound. As Hasbury states, they’re “adding a new flavour to the Arliston pot.”
You can listen to ‘Thawed’ in our Indie Rockers and Outsiders Club playlist.
Follow Arliston:
UNRECORDED 