The Reticent has a new single out, a cover of Metallica’s classic “Fade To Black”, which will be featured on the progressive metal band’s forthcoming album “The Oubliette” produced by Jamie King (BTBAM, The Contortionist, etc.) and due out later this year via Heaven & Hell Records.
The already somber tune is matched up with an equally solemn black and white video. Chris Hathcock, the founder of the band, who performed all main instruments and vocals on the track, goes into depth about choosing the cover:
“The original is a timeless classic, but in listening to it I thought that perhaps the sadness of the words were somewhat attenuated by the catchy and driving riffs. It thematically fell right in line with the over concept of “The Oubliette” as that blanket of loneliness and despair can fall over the suicidal and Alzheimer’s patients alike. I decided to reduce the instrumentation as much as possible to increase that sense of isolation and only used effects to increase the atmosphere. Minimalist and empty sounding like a hospital room. The result hopefully draws more attention to the stark hopelessness in the lyrics. The distance and atmosphere in the track are meant to feel not just isolated, but almost ghostly – as if we are hearing the baleful thoughts of a man void of hope trapped in a hospital bed.”
The Reticent began as an almost exclusively melancholy acoustic project for Hathcock. As time has gone on, the sound of the band got heavier and more diverse. The progressive nature of the band’s most recent offerings now encompasses such a wide scope that one can’t listen to a single song and know the band’s sound.
Recommended for fans of Opeth, Porcupine Tree, and Katatonia; “The Oubliette” will be the fifth album in The Reticent’s discography and is expected out in 2020 as the release date is TBA.
The Reticent‘s cover of Metallica’s “Fade To Black”
THE RETICENT: Facebook