Green Light Silhouette draws from 90s slowcore and early 2000s indie rock on the emotionally resonant “These Waves”. Quite satisfying, the album deserves to be blasted at the highest possible volume. Never hurrying the main goal of Green Light Silhouette is to explore atmosphere and they do it with the greatest of care. From the hardcore/post-rock spirit of the angular guitar riffs to the emotionally charged rhythm section there is a sense of the tragic that ties the whole of the album together. Vocals have a strong presence to them, drawing upon Mark Kozelek’s early work with Red House Painters. Everything about it has a haunting beauty for they allow plenty of room to roam.
Their blend of sound feels highly reminiscent of Codeine, elements of Explosions in the Sky’s cathartic release, and the overall grit of Rodan’s rusty. By choosing such an eclectic range of influences they create a living, breathing realm. Attention to their lyricism results in something half-lived and half-dreamed. Poetic and at times quite beautiful, the clear-eyed intensity of the album works in its favor to deliver something that pierces the heart. Ebbing and flowing they build the tension up significantly only to let it slowly build up until it simply bursts in a bright bloom of color.
Lyrics have a carefully laid tempo on the opener “Detection” with a reminiscent nod to the intense delivery of Down Colorful Hill’s “Japanese To English”. Spacious with a dreamy aura “So Why?” embraces a late-night surrealism. On “Goodnight” Green Light Silhouette takes a cue from Experimental Aircraft with a distortion-laden solo working wonders in framing a sense of tenderness. “Monsters” picks up the tempo considerably for they incorporate a degree of aggression into the sound. The tremendous force of nature that is “Take This Round” neatly incorporates all that came before it, possessing such heart making it easily the album highlight.
“Nu Chaoren” offers hope with a decidedly lighter tone and even some playfulness. A number of twists and turns emerge on the quiet/loud duality of “Pretty Signs”. Going for the gargantuan are the colossal riffs of “Fade into You” that seems to resemble waves crashing on the shoreline. Done with such care the piece truly has a force of nature to it. With “Skies to the Earth” things gain an intimacy for the song has a slyness to it, at least at first before simply letting loose. Perfectly closing the album off is “Strange Houses” which feels triumphant.
With “These Waves” Green Light Silhouette sculpt a sound that feels timeless, just as comfortable in the past as in the present.
