WE SET SIGNALS - Aurora
Pictured: Mark Braithwaite, Dion Amphlet, Nick Wilkinson, Zac Gregson + Shane Duncan - WE SET SIGNALS
Photo courtesy of Tim Price
Single Review from the upcoming album Ordo
Written by: Darcy Moore - Sense Music Media
When I read the track title Aurora, the latest single from the Brisbane post-hardcore outfit WE SET SIGNALS, I immediately went to thoughts of the ethereal, otherworldly magnetic lights phenomena, and how those lights may combine in a musical style. Naturally, I hit play. Was I taken away to a dreamlike state of musical euphoria? Well ... no. Was I unexpectedly kicked in the teeth, in the best way? Yes!
Pictured: Ordo Album cover
It means a lot to me when I hear lyrics about something true and heavy hitting. Lead singer, Nick Wilkinson, says of the song:
“‘Aurora’ refers to what I consider to have been the darkest time in my life where I battled depression and addiction after losing my father to cancer. I became reckless and dissociative and started pushing everyone in my life away. I turned to drugs and alcohol to numb my world and before I knew it I couldn’t stop. I felt like my world was burning down around me, and I couldn’t do anything to put it out.”
The track’s video, I think, is the best complement to the song. The opening eight seconds lofts across an abstract, burnt, and shadowed landscape, leaving us unassured as to what follows but then, as expected, it kicks in. At first I thought I’d seen this all before but touches like the sparks rising up in front of the band playing subtly connects the visuals to the song and the “burning” Wilkinson spoke about. The clip has some unanswered stories peppered in there, but it feels like a part of a larger concept I’m yet to unravel.
After racking up well over five million listens -- nothing to scoff at! -- you may very well already know them. I didn’t. But, hearing new music is what we’re all about. Either way, given the singles they’ve shared so far, the very well received previous releases, and the momentum the band has, Ordo is an album to look forward to. Keep your ears open if Australian post-hardcore is your thing. It’s mine, and I’m here for it. Album out Friday, 25th of September.
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The new album Ordo will be out next Friday 25 September across all streaming platforms
