Out Now
I’ve been immersed in the new The Butterfly Effect album for the past week since its release and my emotions weren’t ignited from the start as they were immediately with the likes of Imago and Final Conversation of Kings. Could it have been the near fourteen year detachment we had to endure of being without one of this country’s finest bands EVER?
Falling off the radar The Butterfly Effect faded into obscurity, (not taking into account Clint Boge’s exceptional numerous acoustic solo tours around the country!) Listening to TBE new album IV I was initially underwhelmed for reasons I can not explain! Musically I’ve moved on during that time with many other releases energising my audio senses. Not that I didn’t like it upon first listen, I just wasn’t prepared for it. But…as mentioned a week is a long time and I have had time to consume IV properly, undisturbed, without annoying adulting trivialities obscuring my consumption of the new Butterfly Effect. I will say this; absence definitely makes the heart grow fonder, and this is absolutely true on IV! Sure, one can have it on as background noise, but is that how we deserve to treat Clint’s voice as he serenades us with woes, wonders and revelations that demand our full attention? Absolutely not!
So…IV opens with the title track, an instrumental solemn alt-country rock affair with haunting vocal melodies anointed by cello and stirring off kilter drums, as the guitar work of Kurt and Glenn on bass collectively hold our hands as we are led down the dark and wondrous path of Butterfly Effect circa: 2022. Dark Light is the beacon that beckons in the distance as it starts softly before suddenly bursting open and we hear the full grandeur of The Butterfly Effect for the first time in oh so long! As the title suggests, it is a dark track with lights of shimmering luminescence to give a true notion of the mindset of the band. Note the magnificent lyric signifying this idea – “Now you’ve got your back against the wall and you were destined again to fall, until we meet again, conversations painful, to those that gave me hell, I wish you well!”
Wave of Tides is a brooding heavier track, drawn out, full of melancholia that I would assume epitomises the emotional feelings of the band who have waited so long to surmise their state of mind throughout their absence and returning to us once again which leads into Nil By Mouth reeking of old school early 2000’s groove laden heavy that Australia was renowned for at the time. The Other Side is a framed and picture perfect glimpse of The Butterfly Effect that we fell in love with! Full of emotion courtesy of Clint magnificently brought to full captivation by the rest of his bandmates.
Note that it is here I have come to fully realise that IV should not be heard or ventured into with one expecting The Butterfly Effect of old. Yes, granted there are glaringly obvious pieces of their past heard on IV but TBE have matured beyond what we could have foreseen or imagined. Many old school fans may either embrace or resent this notion, it makes no difference our meaningless expectations of 2022’s The Butterfly Effect because we have something that’s tangibly magnificent needing to be fully immersed inside of!
So Tired is a melancholic venture down a rabbit hole of emotions. A dichotomy of light and dark, the journey inside a person’s troubled mind and the enduring persistence of rising above lives obstructions leading perfectly into Unbroken, another one of those perfect insights into The Butterfly Effect of times past. Emotionally captivating thanks to the magnificent union Boge demands from the rest of the band.
Great Heights is a heavy rhythmic song, also happening to be one of my faves thanks to its ability to unleash my inner anger but calming that beast at the same time. Without question, it epitomises near perfect Australian progressive heaviness.
The final chapter to IV is Visiting Hours and what can only be summed up as saying PERFECT, here we have The Butterfly Effect reborn! Check it out below:
4/5
The Butterfly Effect – “IV” is out now
Full The Butterfly Effect 2022 Australian Tour Dates details with special guests Thornhill & Caligula’s Horse –
Fri 30 Sep – Tanks Arts Centre (Cairns)
Sat 1 Oct – Mansfield Hotel (Townsville)
Sun 2 Oct – Empire Events (Mackay)
Thu 6 Oct – Blank Space (Toowoomba)
Fri 7 Oct – Eatons Hill Hotel (Brisbane)
Sat 8 Oct – UNSW Roundhouse (Sydney)
Sun 9 Oct – Hobart Uni Bar
Thu 13 Oct – Northcote Theatre (Melbourne)
Fri 14 Oct – Northcote Theatre (Melbourne)
Sun 15 Oct – Hindley St Music Hall (Adelaide)
Sun 16 Oct – Metropolis (Fremantle)
