In 2024 the idea of releasing singles is an interesting one. Outside of the really mainstream artists singles aren’t released to drive radio airplay anymore. And realistically, no one is pushing physical products when it comes to one song these days, although I do miss the days of an interesting non-album B-side! Putting songs out into the world prior to releasing the album they appear on is more about promoting that upcoming album for the kind of bands who still believe in the LP as a concept. Across the board now, singles are there to drive streaming algorithms and monetise playlists, as well as whet your appetite for a future release.
In Vola’s case, the first single from their latest album, Friend of a Phantom, was released back in August 2023. That song Paper Wolf is among the band’s best and was one of the best standalone songs of last year. So the pre-promotion element certainly worked on me, and I spent almost fifteen months looking forward to the album that the song would appear on. Paper Wolf has all the key components that make Vola popular. The intro builds beautifully before they hit you with a wall of guitar. Then the vocals offset that perfectly, giving a sense of melody and beauty to contract the power and ferocity.
Further singles followed Break My Lying Tongue, I Don’t Know How We Got Here and most recently, the album’s opening track Cannibal. Break my lying tongue has a relentless drive to it, fuelled by insistent keyboards and powerful drumming. I Don’t Know How We Got Here has some beautiful light and shade; vocally, it’s a real earworm; lyrically, it reminds me of Porcupine Tree’s This Is No Rehearsal, and musically, it is strident and captivating.
The singles are huge songs, and I was excited to see the other tracks by which they would be surrounded. I anticipated an album of the year contender was on the way. The final single, Cannibal, came out while I was getting into the album for this review. That one packs a punch and opens the album powerfully, helped in part by guest vocalist Anders Friden from In Flames adding some screaming, growly extra vocals to proceedings.
For me the rest of the album failed to quite capture the same level as those big singles. Songs start well, head into exciting territory, but never quite find another gear. The prog listener in me wants shifts in pace and tone, different dynamics as a song grows and expands. So many of the songs here teeter on the brink of something that will have a physical or emotional impact, but they fall ever so slightly short. It’s hard to explain, but compared to the early releases I really loved, the other songs feel a bit like they are treading water. Glass Mannequin is crying out for a significant dynamic shift that never comes. Bleed Out does change as it goes along, hitting you with some natural aggression but it never entirely transcends where it began. Hollow Kid is the song that I liked most outside of the singles. It has some lovely keyboard moments and piano, layered vocals, and biting sound design along the way. I love the runs on this one, and the drumming across the record is really first-class.
Vola have reached the mainstream more than most bands that are considered prog. Their most popular song, Straight Lines, has 5.5 million plays on Spotify and 600,000 views on YouTube. I was in a gym a few months back where Vola was the band of choice throughout my training session; that doesn’t happen with other prog bands I follow.
With clean pop vocals, retro synths, driving guitars and drums and occasional moments of aggression, Vola treads similar ground to Australian band Voyager, who had their own mainstream crossover moment representing Australia at Eurovision. Whatever it is that I find lacking in some of Vola’s songs seems to be there more consistently with Voyager. Last year’s Fearless in Love album is a good case in point.
I’ve seen comparisons with Haken (who I saw Vola support a few years ago) and Leprous, in terms of their fanbase. Musically, they are so close to those levels, but for me, they teeter just on the edge of that level of exceptionalism. This album is a prime example – a really good album, punctuated with some truly great songs. I just wish the whole record met those same heights. If they could bottle what they do on those breakout songs and sprinkle that magic on all the songs, they’d be on to something special. With nine songs and just over forty minutes of run time, I expected more and this was crying too for a couple more tracks to mix things up more. A solid effort that comes close to greatness but can’t quite sustain it over a whole record. Maybe the pop-metal vibes needed a more significant dose of prog for my tastes.
TRACK LISTING
01. Cannibal
02. Break My Lying Tongue
03. We Will Not Disband
04. Glass Mannequin
05. Bleed Out
06. Paper Wolf
07. I Don’t Know How We Got Here
08. Hollow Kid
09. Tray
Total Time – 40:56
MUSICIANS
Asger Mygind – Lead Vocals, Guitar
Martin Werner – Keyboards
Nicolai Mogensen – Bass
Adam Janzi – Drums
~ With:
Anders Fridén – vocals (1)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: Mascot Label Group
Country of Origin: Denmark
Date of Release: 1st November 2024
LINKS
Vola – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | YouTube | X | Instagram