If brave enough to jump into Plough’s gloomy, decadent guitar-powered territories, the keen listener should expect a great deal of melancholia and dark aura, yet also a certain sense of space, sort of like floating into a limitless pool of haunting distortions and expressive vocals. Part post-punk, part shoegaze and with a certain indie quality, ‘Plough’ – the homonymous EP – is described directly by its author as ‘Northern Appalachian noir’, a term that clearly showcases the troublesome lyricism attached to it.
Studying the human condition in all its sharpest edges, Plough decodes post-rock influences with a stark Americana attitude, perhaps making the record a quintessentially US-lenient offering: in fact, we do find some sparse folk hints in it, mainly down to the lamentous vocals and the occasional fuzzy guitars. Overall, the sonic palette is rather strict, with the project’s promoting a precise formula – it seems to be working well, so far.
‘Chiaroscuro’ is the perfect example of what lies behind such an introspective record; a constant battle between light and darkness, the eerie feeling of having stumbled upon something mysterious and painful. As Plough himself explains: “It’s a collection of existential murder ballads, exploring the paradox of modern life: What have we lost in our pursuit of luxury?”
Recommended! Discover ‘Plough’ EP on Spotify:
