Yorkshire melodic metallers, Caskets, who release their new album, Reflections, on August 11th through SharpTone Records, have released an empowering new single, Believe.
Speaking of the track, frontman Matt Flood says, “Believe is a song about realising and recognising your own worth. It’s about letting go of the toxicity in your life and making that step forward. Believe in yourself and the choices you’re making. Even if the path doesn’t seem clear right now, they’ll get you where you want to be.”
There’s an art to looking back. For Caskets, it could have been easy to plough forwards regardless, riding the wave of success from their breakthrough debut Lost Souls (over 80 million streams to date), that opened tours up across the United States and mainland Europe, and secured appearances at landmark festivals Download and Slam Dunk. But having swapped the bedrooms that fostered album number one for countless hours on the road, reflecting on that journey and the decisions that led them down certain paths quickly became unavoidable.
If Lost Souls was primarily driven by vocalist Matt Flood’s personal experiences, Reflections delivers a wider picture of Caskets as a whole, borne out of the usual interpersonal differences that all bands face at least once in their career. For some it marks the end, but for others it fosters a collaborative environment that pushes the music well beyond what has come before.
The result reflects each individual member of Caskets, with Matt joined by guitarists Benji Wilson and Craig Robinson, bassist Chris McIntosh, and drummer James Lazenby. The record’s more upbeat moments carry impactful melodies, upping the ante from Lost Souls with considered force, while the powerful ambient moments play out with real finesse.
In a step away from the singular retellings of Lost Souls, the Dan Weller (Bury Tomorrow, Enter Shikari, Holding Absence) produced Reflections is a series of individual lessons, looking back at a specific moment in one of the band member’s lives; a thought, feeling or events, and how that moment shaped the present.
“Reflections shows how much more we can get out of the band musically if we all put our heads together a bit more,” Matt beams, positive about a record that not only showcases Caskets as a full entity but represents the impressive range of influences that have soundtracked the five piece’s times on the road and in the studio, helping to rapidly expand their sound. “It’s always about the music, that’s the whole point of being in a band,” he concludes. “If we can fit as much into our sound but it still sounds like us, that’s my lifelong goal with Caskets.”
Australian fans can catch Caskets touring nationally starting this week supporting Windwaker alongside Adelaide’s alt. for the Love In The Dark Australian tour.
