ALBUM REVIEW ~ THE BELLWETHER SYNDICATE ~ 'VESTIGE & VIGIL'

I'm music magazine, the bellwether syndicate, beacons, vestige & vigil, dystopian mirror, william faith, sarah rose faith, siouxsie sioux, debbie harry, adam and the ants, the cure — _upscale

Vestige & Vigil is the debut full length album from Chicago based post punk/goth band The Bellwether Syndicate. Fronted by industry veteran William Faith (Christian Death, Mephisto Walz, Shadow Project) and his wife Sarah Rose Faith, the album is the follow up to their 2013 EP The Night Watch.

(From the press release) “Vestige & Vigil offers a view of the world from two perspectives: Vestige (a celebration of what remains) and Vigil (an acknowledgement of what’s been lost).”

The 12 song album opens and ends with intrumentals, “Vestige” and “Voltairine,” respectively. The previous single “Beacons” is an uptempo track featuring William on vocals. Very catchy, with a vocal that reminds me of Marilyn Manson’s “The Dope Show.” “We All Rise,”another prior single, sees a mix of clean and aggressive vocals.

“Republik” continues the string of uptempo tracks with Sarah on background vocals, adding a perfect counter to William’s clean/aggressive mix. This track also has tribal style drumming, reminiscent of Adam and the Ants. “Clarion” is up next, featuring Sarah on lead vocals. While it is easy to compare the vocal on this track to Siouxsie Sioux, I hear definite shades of Debbie Harry. A beautiful vocal performance.

The uptempo “Vigil” is next, featuring my favorite melodic lead guitar break on the album. Another prior single, “Dystopian Mirror” follows, showcasing a tight rhythm section.”Wetworks” and “Golden Age” follow, the latter being the album’s standout track. This song apparently came to William in a dream, and when we awoke, he rushed to the studio to put it on tape before he forgot it. The song again features Sarah on backing vocals. “And If We Miss the Night” is the final vocal track on the albums and reminds me a great deal of goth legends The Cure.

This is a very strong album. The songwriting, arrangements and performances are stellar. The production is perfect, allowing each instrument to be clearly heard, with space and breathing room, and not just a wall of sound. If you like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Sisters of Mercy and the like, this is definitely a record to check out. I’m definitely hoping for an extensive tour to promote this record, and look forward to following the band in the future.

I’m Music Magazine Contributing Writer Jeff Koger