Acolyte – Shades of Black (Album Review)

Acolyte – Shades of Black

 Out 5th August, 2016

Acolyte Line Up —

Morgan-Leigh Brown // Vocals
Jason Grondman // Bass
Chris Cameron // Drums
David Van Pelt // Keys
Pete Borzęta // Guitar

Acolyte Online —

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 The camps of progressive rock and alternative rock have appeared to burgeon greatly in this latter decade, which is perfectly fine for most (myself included). However, this also means that you have to wade through a lot of dross, suffer through a lot of blandness and sometimes even torture yourself with the trivialities of terrible music, but sometimes, you find a diamond that has been compressed by the weight of the music scene it is borne from. So where does Acolyte stand you ask? Read on…

Firstly, Acolyte are as mentioned above, a progressive rock band from Melbourne, with their first release, Shades of Black on the near horizon. Melding together the hallmark traits of the genre; twinkling keys and harmonised melodies whilst adding  the talented and at times, soaring vocals of Morgan-Leigh Brown into the mix. The sound the band has created is competent and cohesive but ultimately, lacks something.

Listening to Shades of Black left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. There is no question that there is skill and passion within this band, but it isn’t conveyed very well. This is the time where I’d say the EP reminds me of another band, or another sound, but overall, the blandness of the songs actually remind me of nothing. Acolyte could be loosely termed as that bowl of tofu that everyone is disinterested in on the smorgasbord table and just kind of glances at and then move on to better things.

This isn’t to say there aren’t shining moments within the confines of the EP though. ‘The Message’ has some truly catchy vocal stylings and the guitar tone complements the whole section beautifully. EP closer ‘Shades of Black’ has similar shining moments, acting as a fitting end to the experience. Just as a whole, the EP lacks a personality and staying power, relegating it to the middle of a pile that is increasing in size every release cycle.

Acolyte are undoubtedly a talented band that have yet to come out of their shells, and when they do, I will be waiting with eager ears and high expectations.

 5/10

 — Dylonov Tomasivich

Shades of Black Track Listing —

1. Monolith
2. Perceptions
3. The Message
4. Chakra
5. In This Life
6. Space and Time