Windhand Post “Grey Garden” Video; Eternal Return out Oct. 5
It seemed doubtful that Virginia’s Windhand would’ve been lying when they said their upcoming album, Eternal Return, was taking them in a different direction, mostly because, why would they? Still, it’s awfully nice to have an example to go from as we head closer to the record’s Oct. 5 release through Relapse Records. And so, with the creepy-image-barrage of the “Grey Garden” video that some site way cooler than this one premiered last week, we get that example. Immediately, it’s the best vocal performance I’ve heard from Dorthia Cottrell. Hands down. She sounds amazing. And behind her, guitarist Garrett Morris, bassist Parker Chandler and drummer Ryan Wolfe unfurl a vision of psychedelic grunge-doom, putting new meaning to the words “produced by Jack Endino” even than those that applied to their last full-length, 2015’s Grief’s Infernal Flower (review here), which the venerable producer also helmed.
The doom-via-grungegaze suits the Richmond four-piece. And “Grey Garden” seems to hold onto the thick low end tonality that’s been crucial to Windhand‘s approach since their first record. But this doesn’t sound like Electric Wizard. Really at all. And that’s a big difference, since even though Windhand had come into their own, they still had that nod at their foundation, and while I wouldn’t necessarily expect “Grey Garden” to represent the entirety of Eternal Return given past variety in their songwriting, it’s telling that it’s the first track they’re breaking out from the album and letting the public hear. They very obviously are trying something new here, and they very obviously want their audience to be prepared for it. Listening to the drift in the midsection and the reemergence of the more weighted tone that follows beneath the scorching, swirling lead, the potential seems to be there for the band to really make a stylistic mark on the greater sphere of doom itself.
I’d recommend you listen twice to really let the hook sink in, to hear the depth in Wolfe‘s snare, to get a handle on the arrival in murk, the departure from it, and the return. I was looking forward to Eternal Return already. My expectations are even higher now.
PR wire info and tour dates follow the video below.
Please enjoy:
Windhand, “Grey Garden” official video
Eternal Return is a complete life-to-death journey. As unplanned things go, it’s an observation of as well as a reflection on life’s ups and downs, joys and sorrows, beginnings and ends. Between the band’s 2015, highly acclaimed Grief’s Infernal Flower, and 2018’s Eternal Return, WINDHAND welcomed new life, survived lineup changes, and mourned unexpected death. The songs and song ordering are the direct result of those experiences. Where “Halcyon” is assured in its opening, the closing track “Feather” is its funeral march.
WINDHAND wrote Eternal Return all throughout the winter. Out of the sessions, “Halcyon,” “Grey Garden,” “Red Cloud,” and the monstrous “Eyeshine” emerged as the heaviest tracks, while “Pilgrim’s Rest,” “Diablerie,” and “Feather” embodied the more reflective side of WINDHAND. The juxtaposition of heavy, psychedelic and pensive is less like Black Sabbath or Sleep and more like Soundgarden or Veruca Salt. But the name-drops aren’t absolute so much as signals of WINDHAND’s ability to stretch beyond genre confines.
Eternal Return represents a new era for the group, a chrysalis moment that takes them to new and unforeseen heights. Boosted by Garrett Morris’ consistently cool riffs-forged at the crossroads of Iommi’s otherworldly import and Kurt Cobain’s spontaneous precocity-powered by Ryan Wolfe and Parker Chandler’s groove-laden rhythms, and propelled by Dorthia Cottrell’s smoky yet wistful vocals, WINDHAND’s new album is a two-step jump for Richmond’s finest purveyors of the psycho-actively heavy. Adorned by Arik Roper’s (Sleep, High on Fire) impressive cover art, Eternal Return not only looks the part of WINDHAND’s artistic growth but sounds the part.
WINDHAND brought Jack Endino back into the fold. Together, they spent two weeks recording at Soundhouse Recording in Seattle. Described as “smooth” and “intense,” the sessions with the famed producer were just what WINDHAND wanted. Endino also understood the group’s artistic progression, chiefly the admiration of and blending in late ’80s/early ’90s grunge. Out of it all, WINDHAND continued to refactor and refine their vision of heavy. A new era of psychedelic heaviness is upon us with WINDHAND’s genre-blurring Eternal Return. Sweet, fuzzed-out oblivion has never been closer…
WINDHAND LIVE DATES:
10/08: Atlanta, GA – The Earl #
10/09: New Orleans, LA – Gasa Gasa #
10/10: Houston TX – White Oak Music Hall #
10/11: Dallas, TX – Club Dada #
10/12: Austin, TX – Barracuda #
10/14: Albuquerque, NM – Sister #
10/15: Phoenix, AZ – Valley Bar #
10/16: Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre #
10/17: Oakland, CA – Starline Social Club #
10/19: Portland, OR – Aladdin Theatre #
10/20: Vancouver, BC – Venue #
10/21: Seattle, WA – Neumos #
10/23: Denver, CO – Larimer Lounge #
10/24: Kansas City, MO – The Riot Room #
11/01: Philadelphia, PA – Underground Arts #
11/02: Brooklyn, NY – Elsewhere #
11/03: Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall #
11/04: Montreal, QC – Le Belmont #
11/05: Toronto, ON – The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern #
11/07: Chicago, IL – Subterranean #
11/08: Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line Music Cafe #
11/09: Milwaukee, WI – Cactus Club #
11/10: Indianapolis, IN – The Hi-Fi #
11/11: Nashville, TN – The Basement East #
11/12: Louisville, KY – Zanzabar #
11/13: Columbus, OH – Ace of Cups #
11/15: Richmond, VA – The Broadberry #
# – w/ Satan’s Satyrs
