Blackwater Holylight

Silence / Motion Colored Vinyl Edition

“Empty surrounds all of me.” It’s a poignant line from the third album by Blackwater Holylight that encapsulates the search for self when suddenly everything has changed. There’s a theme of processing vast personal trauma throughout Silence/Motion that eloquently—both lyrically and musically—and simultaneously embodies the crushing emptiness, sorrow, strength and rebuilding of recovering from personal devastation. Curiously, considering the dark times in which it was created, this is the band’s most melodic and catchy music so far. Blackwater Holylight, as the name suggests, is all about contrasts: it’s a fluid convergence of sound that’s heavy, psychedelic, melodic, terrifying and beautiful all at once. Silence/Motion finds the band honing those contrasts, letting ideas and moods fully develop from song to song, rather than filling every song with a full range of their capabilities. It allows the band to go fully prog-rock here, and simply stay hushed and intimate there. There’s a new confidence to the band in how seamlessly they wield their stylistic amalgam. Features guest vocals from members of Thou and Inter Arma.