Slate - 'Remoter Heaven'
Coming from the Welsh capital of Cardiff, indie quartet Slate are here with “Remoter Heaven,” the gothic rock tune you’ve been longing for.
Produced by Tom Rees of Cardiff’s alt-glam rock band Buzzard Buzzard Buzzard, this seven-and-a-half-minute song combines the musical power of a variety of contributing musicians. Drummer Raychi Bryant, bassist Lauren Edwards, guitarist Ellis Penri, and last but not least, lead vocalist Jack Shephard have all contributed in full-force musical vivacity to this anthem about an emotionally – and physically – monumental experience in youth.
Teasing with singles “Tabernacl” and “Saint Agatha” in 2023, Slate have amped up the anticipation for their debut EP Deathless later this year, with “Remoter Heaven” acting as another teaser. Inspired by the lyrical beauty of poetry, Slate used the expressions of long-gone Welsh poets Dylan Thomas and S. R. Thomas as creative ammo for “Remoter Heaven.” Shephard says about the new single: “The words are an ode to that sensitivity we embrace when we are young (Brace Yourself PR, 2024),” reflecting on a lingering childhood memory. He sings: “And the wicked thorn pricks my leg/It pains me for a cry/Just you and I and red,” unmasking his emotion and vulnerability. The chorus line “I was awake with feeling” exemplifies his present emotional state, vivified by the sensations Shephard once felt as a child, now sprung back to life by this sharp sting. It’s as if the more he repeats the phrase and the louder he grows, the more the wounding intensifies.
The bass tone and structure in the first minute and at the end of the song strongly suggest the single that Bristol group Langkamer put out last November, “Jenny.” Shephard’s vocals in the intro and fade-out are somewhat comparable to singer-songwriter George Ezra. I also hear some elements of ‘90s alt-rock bands Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins in the arrangements and overall tonal quality of the song.
From around the halfway mark, “Remoter Heaven” grows into an overpowering conglomeration of heavily compressed, battering drums, shredding guitar, and wailing vocals; Shephard shows how he is finally ‘awake with feeling.’ Soon, the song mellows out, melting gentler into dissolution as Shephard lets go of the painful recollection. The instruments scrape and sting some more as “Remoter Heaven” comes to a close.
Slate have released an achingly beautiful eulogy to the tenderness of childhood and the memories that stay with one for a lifetime.
Words by Sydney Kaster
