Canadian alt-rock band SWiiMS released their first full-length release titled “Into The Blue Night” after their successful EP “Through Waves”…further establishing and solidifying their place in the dreamy alt-rock world, reigning as one of the realm’s champions.
Hailing from Toronto, the 3 piece power group’s journey started when guitarist Colin Thompson crossed paths with singer/guitarist Mai Diaz Langou, then shortly after they were joined by bassist Cian O’Ruanaidh…completing this dreamy trio each bringing their musicality together to create a unique blend of each one’s musical charisma, giving us “SWiiMS”.
The album is made up of 10 tracks…and drops with a music video for its lead song, “In Puzzles”.
Let’s jump into the album and see what kind of musical journey awaits…
“All I Die For” marks the first step into this journey…and it not only sets expectations for what is to come…it’s all about contrast, while the vocals are dreamy and mesmerizing, the drums are upbeat and powerful, also on the topic of power, the guitars have an edge to them…
“All I Die For” is an excellent introduction to the band’s identity especially if this is your first time experiencing their artistic expression…
…we can’t talk about this album without talking about their lead song “In Puzzles”, which also has a music video…now that we know a bit more about SWiiMS’ direction, let’s start with the visual aspect, the music video…
“In Puzzles”‘s music video has a unique artistic direction to it, it combines artfully shot scenes that play in reverse, while other scenes play normally, then going back and forth…this contrast, which is already one of the themes here, creates a sense of amazement and enjoyment throughout the video…on the other side of the spectrum, is the music itself…
…going strong with their unique style here, SWiiMS creates an even more powerful upbeat rhythm section, with powerful overdriven guitars that have their unique dreamy signature all over it.
One of the most solid and charismatic elements that SWiiMS brings to the proverbial table is that of the vocals…usually consisting of multiple layers, going through a hypnotic musical filter…elevating the whole experience.
The album continues to follow their signature musicality, mixing contrasting musical ideas…fusing the upbeat, the ambient, the powerful, and the dreamy…
…midway, SWiiMS mixes things up with “Staring At The Sun” with both a punk-ish guitar riff and a punk-ish driving drum beat…this kind of change comes at an excellent time in the album’s runtime, strategically placed for a maximum impact.
…going back to their dreamy yet upbeat energy, they bring us back with “Chemical” and “Thru The Trees”…but wait…there is another brilliant pivot in the album with “A Million Starts”…a laid-back dreamy track that focuses more on the dreamy side, with huge sounding ambient guitar chords and captivating vocal melodies, SWiiMS manages to maintain the enjoyment factor up high…” A Million Stars” is a song that resonated with me personally and completely caught me off guard.
“Into The Blue Night” is a killer album, mixing between the mellow and the powerful, always creating musical contrast that surprises with each turn.
SWiiMS is the kind of band that has a very strong musical charisma and presence…if you love one of their songs, you’ll fall in love with their discography…like we did.
We wish all the best to the amazing band and we can’t wait for their next musical adventures…but we’ll be waiting, that’s for sure.
Cheers!