Beautiful may be a word you can use to describe Guiding Lights, the second album from Skyharbor, but quite honestly it’s difficult to capture the majesty of the piece in one mere word.
Everything just sounds so smooth and meticulously controlled; almost like Skyharbor are gliding from one song to the next, and the music as a whole fits together nicely. It’s so big and melodic, with atmospheric vocals and gloriously massive stadium-filling guitar sections, and the rhythmic lines courtesy of the bass and drums give the album an all-round chunky tone throughout. The sound is just presented in incredible clarity and it really is something to behold.
The album flows as one continuous track and this both works in its favour and against. It’s good because it really highlights just how well each song is constructed and it feels very adventurous, but on the other hand it is a little difficult to fully commit to – at almost seventy minutes in duration, it isn’t really an album you can pick up halfway through because it feels like you’re interrupting the flow and it is a lengthy offering to sit down and listen to in one go.
Skyharbor have really crafted something to be proud of with Guiding Lights, however, and it’s surely only a matter of time before they become the next big thing. This is a band with the potential to go very far in years to come.
8/10
