‘The Waves’ is the latest powerful release from Anna Lee & the Authority. The song is a description of watching someone die and the aftermath of losing them. As dark as this sounds, Anna Lee & the Authority skilfully manage to empower the situation.
‘The Waves’ begins with a sound from nature – a storm. The wind and rain can be heard as two electric guitars are heard. This use of nature sets the scene brilliantly for the subject matter to be discussed during the song. The guitars are surrounded by luscious reverb and have been panned to separate sides of the audio spectrum. They are playing two separate parts but they continuously work in harmony together, never clashing and always complimenting each other. Next, we hear the sultry and commanding vocals from Anna Lee.
Anna Lee’s voice on this track is controlled and breathy and is a masterclass in performance. with such a dark subject matter it would be easy to be swept along in a depression of loss but Anna Lee’s voice does not let this happen. Oozing with command and empowerment throughout, the listener is guided through the dark and taken to another place. Lyrics such as, ‘Death came and showed us the way’ takes away the fear and puts some hope back into the darkness. It is an extremely well-composed song, hard-hitting and complex.
There is further instrumentation as the track progresses. More guitars are added, this time in the sound of acoustics. They again have completely separate parts but all work together in harmony. At one point we counted at least 4 guitars playing at the same time, due to the excellent composition, they build layers of audio bliss and never impose on one another. They have been mixed so well that they each fit beautifully into their own space in the production. We also hear a kick drum which feels like the heartbeat of the song. Later there is a snare too, again with lots of wonderful reverb used perfectly to enhance the sound.
Near the end, the instrumentation pulls away and we get to hear a chorus which is sung acapella by Anna Lee. This really is time for the vocals to shine on their own. When the instrumentation kicks back in the song builds to its climax. At the very end, ’The Waves’ finishes with feedback, a great ending to a brilliant song.
With a single as strong as this one, we can not wait to hear what will come next from these exciting artists!
Reviewed by FVReviews September 2018
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