The Radicant's 'We Ascend' - EP Review

I think that it is fair to say that one of the biggest musical casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic was Anathema. The Liverpool-based progressive/alternative rock band had enjoyed a really fruitful and creative decade since a soft relaunch in 2010 with the excellent We're Here Because We're Here following a quiet few years during the late 2000s - with three more excellent albums and plenty of touring following, until a tenth anniversary tour for the aforementioned We're Here Because We're Here  was cancelled after only a few shows in March 2020. This seemed to cripple the band financially and a few months later it was announced that they were no more. I caught that truncated tour in London and the band were fantastic - so their demise was cruel one. Four years on, though, we are starting to see the shoots of recovery from that series of events - as Anathema fans are being treated to two related releases this year. September will see the launch of Weather Systems, named after Anathema's 2012 album, which will likely be a continuation of Anathema's 2010s sound, but last month saw the official launch of The Radicant - a new project from Anathema's frontman Vincent Cavanagh. Despite having been the voice of Anathema since taking over from original vocalist Darren White in 1995 and being a multi-instrumentalist both live and in the studio from the start, Cavanagh was never Anathema's main creative force. He wrote plenty of songs for the band over the years, but he was somewhat 'down the list' of their songwriters - with his brother, drummer John Douglas, and original bassist Duncan Patterson (at least early on) likely ahead of him. In some ways, though, that makes The Radicant an exciting prospect. I like a lot of Cavanagh's contributions to Anathema, but often he was fleshing out and fronting others' ideas - whereas this new project really allows him to express himself. The Radicant is a pseudonym for Cavanagh so it is essentially a solo project, but it has been presented as something more than just a vehicle for music - and it seems to be more of a widespread multimedia project. It will be interesting to see what that means in practice - but the first taste of what may follow is the debut EP We Ascend. The five tracks here are a collaboration between Cavanagh and French producer Ténèbre - whom is more at home in electronica and techno circles. Unsurprisingly, then, We Ascend is very different from Anathema. There are occasional similarities, largely stemming from Cavanagh's distinctive voice, but this EP is not a rock release in any meaningful way - with electronica and ambient soundscapes dominating. It is not the sort of music that I tend to listen to, and I almost certainly would not have listened to the EP if it was not for the Anathema connection, but I have found myself enjoying it since it came out - especially after giving it a few listens.

Cavanagh and Ténèbre are essentially responsible for everything here, but there are some additional vocals throughout from Sarah Derat and Amy Wood - whilst Cavanagh's former bandmate Daniel Cardoso drums on one song. The five songs here get underway with the title track - which opens with some slow-burning percussive pulses, shimmering synths which sound like how a Mellotron might have sounded had they been invented in the 1980s, and some sombre piano. Derat's voice is actually the first voice heard, with some opening wordless vocalisations, before Cavanagh starts to sing in a slow, floaty manner which is less driven than his usual style - but his trademark emotional power is still present. The verses, if they can be called that, are largely driven by slow-moving piano melodies, whilst the pulse and synth swells add occasional depth, whilst a chorus later makes use of big vocal layers - as Cavanagh and Derat's voices merge to create something surprisingly uplifting, yet dense. Repeated themes are a big part of this EP and each song tends to stretch out one or two core ideas - with the chorus here dominating as the song moves forward, with each iteration sounding more discordant. Zero Blue [NSS Mix] picks up the pace, given that it features Cardoso's drumming, and it ends up sounding a little like a few of tracks on Anathema's final album The Optimist (which I reviewed here) from 2017 crossed with Hesitation Marks era Nine Inch Nails. Given that the song is identified as being a specific mix makes me wonder if the 'true' version is being held back for a future album - but the hypnotic rocker will delight Anathema fans and Cavanagh sounds a bit more like his old self here. The busy drumming and fuzzy synths create a slight industrial backdrop, but the piano melodies which generally permeate this EP remain - whilst Cavanagh's vocal hooks throughout are catchy, with a good mix of layered, rhythmic sections and soaring, emotional sections similar to his usual approach. Anchor initially returns to the EP's typical slow burning approach, with some crackling static effects heralding another sombre piano motif, which is the slowest and most morose so far, over which Cavanagh soon begins to sing. Structure-wise, though, the song is a bit more varied compared to the opening cut, which was similarly slow, although it feels much more overtly ballad-like at first - with the piano and vocal lines dominating. Synths and the occasional crashing sound effect are used for impact, with some of the intro's static being reused, but later a drum machine kicks in and the song morphs into something heavier overall - albeit with the sombre piano retained.

Perhaps the biggest departure for Cavanagh, though, is Wide Steppe - a lengthy piece with no lyrics which matches various synth textures with his and Wood's wordless vocals. Multiple vocal layers, with different treatments, are utilised throughout the song - and they are essentially used as lead instruments. There are choral sections, but generally the vocalisations are used in a manner in which synths would usually be used. There are synths here, too, and the vocals have certainly been mixed together with synths at times - but the mix of Cavanagh's rich voice creating a choir for Wood's siren-like notes to soar above transcends the synths for the most part even though a pulse does slowly build away in the background. The EP then comes to a close with Stowaway, which is a bit less treated than some of the other pieces here - with less of a widespread pallet of sounds. Essentially the track is made up of piano and vocals, again, but there is little else joining them early on. There are synth swells similar to those found during the title track, in what feels like coming full circle, whilst Derat also adds some subtle harmonies occasionally. A synth-driven pulse does kick in towards the end, but it is much less aggressive than the one in Anchor - with the track remaining melancholic and piano-led until the very end. It allows the EP to somewhat finish as it started, which is always welcome, and the five-song journey here showcases quite a bit of variety despite there very much being a core sound which is often revisited. There is enough of what I have always liked about Cavanagh's music here to keep me interested - even, as I said previously, due to this sort of music not being that which I usually listen to. I am certainly keen to see how The Radicant develops going forward, and there is enough here to keep me invested - as it is great to see Cavanagh being creative again.

The EP was released on 12th July 2024 via Kscope. Below is the band's promotional video for Zero Blue [NSS Mix].