There are a number of things that an album needs to make it a great record. Perhaps the most important thing it needs to do in order to stand out though, is absorb the listener. Luckily for all of us then, Evi Vine is a natural when it comes to this.
...And So The Morning Comes is an album so drenched in emotion and atmosphere that it completely immerses you from the first second to the last. Musically you can hear echoes of Massive Attack, Portishead, PJ Harvey, Polly Scattergood and Warpaint; it really is that good.
Opening with `The Dreamers', a real moody, slow building number with plenty of reverb and echo, it becomes immediately apparent just how dark and haunting this record will be. It sets the tone for everything the follows. `Inside Her' is dark and sparse and yet still manages to be romantic and, as on all of these tracks, the vocal is stunning as Evi sings over a gently picked guitar `A touch of her skin feels like summer' `Down' and `Time Flies' are equally as mesmerising while `Colours Of The Night' is as close as Evi gets to pop as the moody, dark electric guitar is replaced by a plucky acoustic ukulele. Lyrically though it is a million miles from plucky `The consequence of loving you is all too obvious / and yes it's true to say that it's destroying me'
The album closes with the aptly named `All The Beauty' which sounds like it belongs on a horror movie as Evi gently mutters `All the beauty in the world' again and again whilst the guitars echo and feedback eerily in the background. Evi Vine's debut is many things; gorgeous, ethereal, haunting, twisted, dark and above all absorbing. It is a truly wonderful record.
8/10
David Tinkler
