If you’re a fan of Finnish theatrical metal, the name LOST IN GREY is the first that should pop into your brain. Formed back in 2013 and with three albums of increasingly impressive quality coming out since then, these guys are one of the names to look out for if you like your metal to be big and bombastic! Luckily for us, they have released a new track called “The Entourage,” which is the first single from their upcoming fourth album!
Where many theatrical bands fail and LOST IN GREY succeeds is found in their use of dynamics. These guys know how to turn it up to 11, but without blowing out the listener’s ears every time. This is a 7+ minute song, so you can already expect it to be big yet smooth, as it opens on whispered voices and light ambient music before kicking into its symphonics. Then, we are graced with the magnificent dual voices of Anne Lill Rajala and Emily Leone, with the latter using her traditionally more classical vocal style to spice things up. Eventually, you get Harri Koskela‘s input in there as well, for some more texture and personality. Of course, as the song builds up, it reaches its 11 magnificently, creating a spectacular climax, before gently fading out. Truly, it’s setting a great precedent for whatever the rest of this album will sound like, just like you’d expect from the first track in a musical!
Even better, LOST IN GREY have always had some esoteric themes to their releases, so the lyrics to this song are really exciting. This song is a kind of meta-take on the story they’ve been telling so far, as Anne Lill expresses that she’s bored with her character, while Emily Leone speaks of her character’s heartbreak, from which she too has moved on. Personally, it feels like the song itself is about how stories evolve and grow, as the people who write and perform in them grow and evolve themselves, making this feel like almost a new introduction to the band and their stage. One must assume that this is the first song from the new album, which makes me all the more excited to see where the story will go this time, if this is the current state of affairs!
Furthermore, I love this music video. Rather than strictly doing a “band performing” video or a “behind the scenes” video, they combine both ideas, showing the band hanging out, getting ready for shows, and performing. I find this blend to be the best of both worlds, showing the band all through the making-of and prep material to the on-camera parts – it shows that they’re not afraid to show who they are behind the curtains, as well as in front of them. All of this is under a cool spectrum of purple and blue lighting.
Ultimately, this is a pretty hot start to the year, musically, so let’s hope that we’ll be hearing more from them sooner rather than later! Keep your eyes and ears peeled for this upcoming release, it’s bound to be a good one!
Written by Bear Wiseman
