24 Nov 2024
UsernamePassword

Remember Me? | Join | Recover
Click here to sign in via social networking

Dreams Are Like Water - EP Review: A Sea-Spell

04 Sep 2017 // A review by Paul Goddard
Growing up in the UK in the eighties I was massively influenced by bands like The Mission, Fields of the Nephilim, Sisters of Mercy and The Cure. I loved the atmospherics, the darkness and also the energy of bands like The Mission.

I have heard music by Michel Rowland's other band Disjecta Membra and was gutted to miss them when they opened for The Mission recently in Auckland. So when I heard about the debut release from Dreams Are Like Water, also featuring Jamie Scott Palmer and Rosebud Garland, I jumped at the chance for an early listen.

The four tracks on this EP are the first songs recorded by the group and apparently, original plans were to just share them amongst friends but interest from labels around the world has seen the band already sign with Vesper Records in the US.

A Sea-Spell starts with the sound of ocean waves and Michel's unmistakable vocal but we are quickly introduced to Rosebud. She has an amazing voice which fits perfectly with the atmospherics of the song and reminds me of Julianne Regan from All About Eve.

(Thrice) in Blood is a more upbeat piece with the drum machine kicking off proceedings and it's probably my favourite track I am sure this one will be a favourite in any upcoming live performances.

Ineffable is a brooding and trippy affair with soaring guitars and dual vocals. Kind of like a nursery rhyme you would sing to your kids if you wanted them to have nightmares. What really stands out at this point is how talented this band are. It's no surprise they have generated interest around the world with this debut.

Feathered Infant Bells is almost an instrumental track with the vocals only coming in half way through but it also twists and turns and morphs into one of the most interesting songs on here. It is the perfect closer to a debut EP which shows huge promise and potential. Listening to this took me back to my teens but also introduced me to a new band from Wellington I am keen to follow.


Review written by Paul Goddard
 

About Dreams Are Like Water

Named for a This Mortal Coil song, Dreams Are Like Water is a new music trio from Wellington.

Their debut EP, A Sea-Spell, is forthcoming from Vesper Records, California, USA.


Visit the muzic.net.nz Profile for Dreams Are Like Water

Releases

A Sea-Spell
Year: 2017
Type: EP

Other Reviews By Paul Goddard

Cairo Knife Fight - EP Review: Dream Season
19 Jul 2024 // by Paul Goddard
Cairo Knife Fight have been around a while and been through a lot. Spawned in NZ and now based in the U S of A it has been a journey full of highs and lows.
Read More...
The Dirty Tones - Album Review: Sweet Thang
23 May 2024 // by Paul Goddard
For me, Blues music is the real soul music. It has storytelling like Country and folk music and passion like Rock music, but at its core it gives a window into the soul of the people creating it.
Read More...
Sam Cullen - EP Review: Love Again
18 Apr 2024 // by Paul Goddard
When I first heard this brand-new EP from Invercargill native Sam Cullen, I was immediately reminded of another famous Sam who has an equally famous last name (Fender).The four songs on the Love Again EP  have a familiarity and similarity with roots going back to Springsteen and the well-trodden stadium rock road but there is also something in the songs on Love Again that could only be grown in New Zealand.
Read More...
Skitch Hiker - Single Review: Slippery Wet Handshake
30 Jun 2023 // by Paul Goddard
Wow.Just when you have given up on music and banging your head against a brick wall wondering why Taylor Swift is more popular than toilet roll during a pandemic something like this comes along.
Read More...
Retro Valley - Single Review: Backseat Lovers
19 May 2023 // by Paul Goddard
Right from the opening bars of Backseat Lovers by Hamilton-based Retro Valley it is clear that this song is pure class.This 3-minute tune is a next-level lesson in how to create, perform and produce a pop/indie classic.
Read More...
Murmur Tooth and Lars Moston - Album Review: No Time To Explain
19 May 2023 // by Paul Goddard
Collaborations can work. Sometimes they do most of the time they don't.
Read More...
Album Review: Sex Dad's Greatest Hits: The Very Best Of Sex Dad
27 Dec 2022 // by Paul Goddard
Feeling bloated and underwhelmed. Listening to mainstream radio in the car as I left my phone at home.
Read More...
Marrow Neck - EP Review: Made Up
23 Nov 2022 // by Paul Goddard
Sitting here in a very wet and cold, rainy UK watching the oldies falling out of the local Wetherspoons where they have been on the piss since 9am (yep the UK is weird it's only the old people who can afford to get pissed all day).I am reflecting on the past as I listen to the latest EP Made Up from Auckland-based Mark Hannington.
Read More...
View All Articles By Paul Goddard

NZ Top 10 Singles

  • APT.
    ROSÉ And Bruno Mars
  • DIE WITH A SMILE
    Lady Gaga And Bruno Mars
  • BIRDS OF A FEATHER
    Billie Eilish
  • TASTE
    Sabrina Carpenter
  • I LOVE YOU, I'M SORRY
    Gracie Abrams
  • ESPRESSO
    Sabrina Carpenter
  • SAILOR SONG
    Gigi Perez
  • LOSE CONTROL
    Teddy Swims
  • A BAR SONG (TIPSY)
    Shaboozey
  • GOOD LUCK, BABE!
    Chappell Roan
View the Full NZ Top 40...
muzic.net.nz Logo
100% New Zealand Music
All content on this website is copyright to muzic.net.nz and other respective rights holders. Redistribution of any material presented here without permission is prohibited.
Report a ProblemReport A Problem