Recently confirmed for Desertfest London 2025, Hertfordshire-based melodic progressive atmospheric heavy rockers Erronaut will release their debut album, The Space Inbetween,  on vinyl in January through we-kn0w-this-because-we-are-this imprint London Doom Collective. The digital version arrived in August, and with it, the four-piece of guitarist/vocalist Mikey Ward, guitarist Peter Hunt, bassist Simon Wilson and drummer Sam Gates — who operated as Black Atlas between 2015-2023 and offered the full-length Weight of the World in 2018 — immediately set their sights on notions of expanse.

If you plug in the coordinates set in the title of the album-intro “5.68ºN 98.54ºE” you end up in the Malacca Strait — which I’d almost think was the band making a pun, but they’re not Greek — somewhere between Malaysia and Sumatra, and honestly, fair enough for the breadth that follows in the plunge “Way Down Below” and the Elephant Tree-style declarative fluid roll that begins “Lost Cause,” which at seven minutes uses that terrestrial foundation as a launch site for noisier exploration, psychedelic in the sense of fluidity and a push of various effects, but cognizant always of where it’s headed. Is it the space in between galaxies, I wonder, or the nucleus of atoms, or some other impossibly vast reach?

The record varies in intention as “Per Contra” chugs initially and ends up feeling like mid-tempo Sasquatch filtered through post-hardcore before the subsequent interlude/side B leadoff “Echoes Inside” mirrors the far-back guitar methodology of the map-points but without the first track’s staticky voiceover. The lonely strum that emerges in “Echoes Inside” evolves into the nod of “1202,” which grows bombastic before opening up in its second half and letting that tension go… until the screaming starts.

A forceful ending there lets the well-placed “Underneath the Sun” continue momentum into its crash-laced start-stop first verse, and it holds until the subsequent “Dark Horizon” begins a distant-feeling introduction that’s not so far removed from “Echoes Inside” or “5.68ºN 98.54ºE” and turns out to be enough to realign the proceedings in grounded fuzz density before the two-part finale “Beyond Sleep Pt. 1 (The Insomnia)” and “Beyond Sleep Pt. 2 (The Subconscious Decompression)” — the former a three-minute straightforward succession of verses that lets Ward carry the build in his emotive vocals, which he does ably, and the latter serving as the longest cut at about eight and a half minutes and satisfies in both its heavy, this-applies-to-everything-style crescendo and in the subsequent gradual comedown finishing with a last low buzz like sonar pulses — underscore the point that Erronaut know what they’re doing.

Since, technically speaking, The Space Inbetween is the band’s first long-player, confirming a clarity of direction and their capacity to realize an apparent vision of sound is probably already too high a standard to set, but it’s one to which Erronaut live up anyhow. Their years operating as Black Atlas — whose final release was Live at Bloodstock in 2022 — are a likely factor in the coherence of this material, the way the procession of songs seems to know just when it wants to pivot to avoid getting lost in the wash it’s made, and the consideration behind the mix, the layering of the vocals, the trades between largesse and emptier spaces, on and on, but the moniker swap comes with an according atmospheric shift, taking what was a rawer sonic incarnation on Weight of the World and letting it breathe in open air.

With this in mind, The Space Inbetween becomes a forward-looking realization even as it builds on what the band had accomplished under their old name. Ambient even at its heaviest, the album has a richness of character that undercuts the idea of pretense through the heart poured into its execution, and seems to have room available for those who might trace their path to it from various, sometimes disparate subgenres. As the band looks forward to a busy first half of 2025, I’m happy to host the premiere of the video for “Underneath the Sun,” which like the album itself is about both performance and atmosphere, and which you’ll find on the player below, followed by info from the PR wire on Desertfest and other UK shows, the coming vinyl release, etc., and the full stream from Bandcamp for after you watch the clip and want more.

Please enjoy:

Erronaut, “Underneath the Sun” video premiere

‘The Space Inbetween’ vinyl preorder: https://erronautuk.bandcamp.com/merch

Following the release of their debut album, Erronaut return with a devastating trifecta of new updates this month; confirmation of their spot at Desertfest London 2025, a vinyl reissue of The Space Inbetween and a brand-new video for their latest single, ‘Underneath the Sun’.

Featuring vocalist/guitarist, Mikey Ward; fellow guitar slinger, Peter Hunt, bassist Simon Wilson, and drummer Sam Gates, Erronaut’s singular sound has continued to evolve at every turn. Drawing inspiration from the iconic 70s rock of Black Sabbath and Pink Floyd, the 90s grunge of Soundgarden, and stoner metal of modern torchbearers Lowrider and Fu Manchu, the band seek to conquer new frontiers.

Employing heavy atmospheric rock to power lyrical subjects that focus on love, loss, and existential introspection, the dynamic foursome craft immersive sonic landscapes that transport listeners to distant realms. None more so than on new single and standout album track, ‘Underneath the Sun’:

“‘Underneath The Sun’ really captures us at our collaborative best,” explains vocalist Mikey Ward. “The song started out a lot quicker and had a more aggressive Crowbar feel to it but once we got it in the room, we really picked it apart and developed it into what it became. Lyrically, it’s a back and forth with two people, one asking for a helping hand to die and the other assuring them they will be fine when the other passes.”

The band also recently secured their place alongside the likes of Zeal & Ardor and Elder at next year’s Desertfest London, which will take place on 16th – 18th May, and have also announced a string of live dates into 2025. (See below.)

The Space Inbetween is out now on London Doom Collective, but the vinyl version will get an official release on 24th January 2025 in two variants; Standard “Green” Edition (limited to 150 copies) and Limited Edition “Black Splatter” (100 copies). Pre-orders are open here: https://erronautuk.bandcamp.com/merch

Live Dates:
29/11/24 – Poco Loco – Chatham
05/12/24 – The Gryphon – Bristol
24/01/25 – Tap N Tumbler – Nottingham
31/01/25 – The Dev – Camden
05/04/25 – Tonehenge – Birmingham
02/05/25 – Mosh Monthly – Dundee
16/05-18/05/25 – Desertfest – London
07/06/25 – Hope & Anchor – London
25/09/25 – The Six Six Bar – Cambridge
01/11/25 – Legends – Edinburgh

Erronaut:
Simon Wilson – Bass
Peter Hunt – Guitar
Sam Gates – Drums
Mikey Ward – Vocals, Guitar

Erronaut, The Space Inbetween (2024)

Erronaut on Facebook

Erronaut on Instagram

Erronaut on Bandcamp

London Doom Collective on Facebook

London Doom Collective on Instagram

London Doom Collective on Bandcamp

Tags: Erronaut, Erronaut The Space Inbetween, Hertfordshire, London Doom Collective, The Space Inbetween, UK

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