A relaxed experience
With their fourth album, Shadow Offering, Calgary, Alberta’s Juno award-winning Braids brings a relaxed experience with soft synths and percussions alongside the powerful mellow lead vocals of Raphaelle Standell-Preston. Braids comprises of sounds and aspects in deep vocals and psychedelic melodies like that of Keep Shelly In Athens with the drowning keyboards similar to Keane and the soft guitar strums of John Jagos’ side project, Seafoam.
Shadow Offering opens with narcotic repetitive synths with the climactic bursts of keyboard and guitars on “Here 4 U,” a close to four minutes pall melody fit for chilling in lush grass under a red setting sun. With slurred melancholic punk vocals and upbeat percussions with faded riffs “Young Buck” comes cruising in, a synth-full sinful love song with a featured music video directed by Kevin Calero.
Released in November of 2019 on YouTube, “Eclipse (Ashley)” features the cinematography and directing of Nina Vroemen with stunningly vibrant visuals to garnish Preston’s vocals and Taylor Smith’s supporting keyboards for an altogether uplifting cheering experience. Low and heavy bass synth-waves bring gradual build-ups to the soft sweet ringing guitar riffs of “Just Let Me” for those “I wish it could be quiet for a moment” moments.
With core soft rock elements, “Upheaval ii” brings the charming allure and glamour of guitar riffs for a laid-back feel fit for warm and breezy cool early spring afternoons. Stretched vocals and hard strung guitar riffs on top of quirky light keyboards and synths compose the bulk of “Fear Of Men” with a sly and sleek sound that alludes to the melodies and vocals of School Of Seven Bells.
Premiering back in March, the nine-minute-long track “Snow Angel” hits with a featured music video directed and edited by the 2016 award-winning film director’s, Hello Destroyer, Kevan Funk. “Snow Angel” focuses on themes of current issues millennials such as over-population, global warming, pollution, etc. Laced with hard and heavy guitar riffs and low constant synth in the background give the track a heavy serious tone for the overall theme being portrayed lyrically and film.
Preston’s harmonic vocals are highlighted with supporting synths and soft guitar strums in “Ocean” for a quiet relaxing daydreaming sensation.
“Note To Self” concludes the album with catchy energetic percussions lined with gloomy keyboards and drowning synth-waves that give for a heightened impactful outro to Shadow Offering.
Shadow Offering offers an excellent blend of guitar, keyboard and percussions for a melancholic experience fit for sleepy laid back afternoons and features artistic films and creative production work to comprise the album.
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