Album Review: Haux – 'Violence in a Quiet Mind'
Rising singer songwriter Haux shares deeply personal debut album ‘Violence in a Quiet Mind’. Grab a blanket (and a box of tissues), close your eyes and let Haux guide you to the other side of sorrow.
‘Violence in a Quiet Mind’ is hard to put into words. It’s more than music. It’s therapy for a troubled soul, trying to make sense of dark realities. It’s coping with the trauma of losing a loved one. It’s beautiful and heart-breaking and, somehow, it’s also healing. Just like grief itself, the album is a journey. From heart-wrenching opener ‘Hold On’ that so perfectly captures the initial stages of bottomless despair in raw, shaky vocals and gently haunting piano lines to finding little traces of peace in the brighter sides of ‘Calico’. “The album is about honesty after hiding for so many years. I think it’s something like a self-guided therapy session for sensitive people like me,” Haux reveals. “It’s an album for people who naturally hide their true feelings; people that look OK on the outside but are struggling on the inside, people who think they don’t deserve to get the help they really need”.
From start to finish, ‘Violence in a Quiet Mind’ finds strength in vulnerability. By sharing his own experiences, Haux makes the rest of us feel less alone in our struggle to grasp a pain that cuts much deeper than human perception. His impressively intimate lyricism that doesn’t shy away from dark memories, and gently soothing vocals are a lifeline. Calm in the midst of swirling chaos. Standout moments are ‘Killer’ and ‘Eight’, two songs that showcase his extremely emotive songwriting. While ‘Killer’ cuts deep with shivering vocals and an earth-shattering chorus of “I forgive you”, ‘Eight’ features fellow singer songwriter Rosie Carney whose soaring vocals beautifully intertwine with Haux’s own. Weightlessly dancing along soft, angelic melodies, the two revisit a moment of death and break down your walls slowly – “I was eight and you were old. I held your hand as you went cold.”
With ‘Violence in a Quiet Mind’, Haux has created a debut record that will stand the test of time. It takes a lot of courage to be this honest, this vulnerable, and it’s hard not to feel a sense of gratitude for an artist who is helping a lot of people to navigate their own grieving process. An exceptional album by an exceptional songwriter.
Words by Laura Freyaldenhoven