Review by Saxy S for VOLA - Applause of a Distant Crowd (2018)

Simple, But that Doesn't Mean it's Easy

By all accounts, Applause of a Distant Crowd shouldn't work. This is an album that is too simple for progressive music. The synth leads on this album are deliberately loud and at the top of the hierarchy of sound, while the guitars play a far more harmonic and rhythmic role. The albums song lengths are rather brief, even by comparison to some tracks from Inmazes. And yet, none of Applause of a Distant Crowd sounds simple. Songs on this record have a strong tendency to grow and develop over time, whether that be a quiet modulation in time signature, the main chorus being slightly altered over time, the percussion adding a complex drum fill in place of what was a standard groove previously. And most importantly, all of it feels like it belongs within the same walls of this album.

This is a record that I hear many people discussing when bringing up Sleep Token in the modern day. And having gone back recently to hear this album again, I completely understand why. My biggest concern with Sleep Token today, which I mentioned in my review of Even in Arcadia, is how pop and progressive don't mix well together. Sleep Token want to write pop songs with a progressive foundation, but forget that most people who listen to pop music can't pay attention for longer than three minutes at a time! VOLA gets this in spades on Applause of a Distant Crowd. While the songs themselves are not as pop centric from an audible point-of-view, the shorter song lengths mixed with beautiful sung choruses make it stand out. The progressive elements are not forced directly in front of the audience like how they would on a Dream Theater album. And the light touches of intensity from the percussion and the reserved scream vocals add the heavy metal and progressive punches that this album desperately needs.

It's a bit of a shame that VOLA have not been able to retain this niche into later albums. Recent albums have done away with the pop centric attitude and have become more "djentrified", especially on Witness and overbearing synth leads on Friend of a Phantom. I hope that this doesn't turn out to be a flash-in-the-pan type album, but with each passing release, it's looking more and more like that'll be the case.

Best Songs: Ruby Pool, Applause of a Distant Crowd, We Are Thin Air, Alien Shivers, Still