Review Summary: A sweet blend of everything the band recorded so far…
No rest for The Sonic Dawn, as they present us their 4th studio album,
Enter the Mirage just over a year after its predecessor,
Eclipse landed. The Danish trio really took me by surprise with the latter’s immediate, infectious tunes that reached all the way back to ‘60s psychedelic pop. Thankfully, they decided to build upon the respective experience here, incorporating previous sounds and experiments to complement this collection of tracks. As a result, this latest LP comes across as a blend of everything they recorded so far. We receive groovy pieces such as ‘Young Love – Old Hate’ or ‘Hits of Acid’, which don’t waste any time sticking sweet melodies in your head, as well as laid back, sunbathed hooks on the title track, ‘Loose Ends’ and ‘Shape Shifter’. These ideas are fleshed out, allowing the band to expand certain segments, add spaced out detours or even chunky riffs here and there. Moreover, the folksy side gets portrayed too, through hazy cuts such as ‘Children of the Night’ or ‘UFO’, balanced really nice by classic organ-led stompers with surf rock influences (‘Soul Sacrifice’) & Siena Root-esque psych jam, ‘Join the Dead’. The album flows smoothly, besides this, there is variety and several interesting hooks to keep you entertained until the last note.
The guys tried their best to represent all their sides on
Enter the Mirage, all the while maintaining the polished production (which I still believe suits them best). In the end, it’s a matter of taste what you prefer most from their output, whether succinct pop ditties or more expansive dreamy structures. Nevertheless, The Sonic Dawn sound rather fresh in a genre where most acts just don’t bother stepping out of the shadows of their influences.
