Prior to this, Iress was not a name I was familiar with. However, once their new single “Shamed” started playing, I was almost immediately hooked. Coming hot off of their third album, planned for early next year, “Shamed” is soaked in reverb, great vocals, and, most of all, a sense of melancholy that manages to be sincere instead of theatrical and impersonal. In that sense, the single reminds me most of Trees of Eternity and the heartbreaking story/talent of Aleah Stanbridge. Both Iress and that ill-fated project have a fascination with doom and its slowness but meld it not with the guttural brutality of that genre’s often abrasive vocals but with the scintillating beauty of clean, evocative singing. Head on down below for your first taste of this frigid, emotional offering.
“Frigid” might be the wrong word here, or rather, not one which is enough to describe what’s happening on “Shamed” all by itself. There’s plenty of “warmness” here; the main riffs undulates outwards from the chords, heavy feedback working very well with the faint synths that run in the background. But this is not the warmth of security but rather a sweltering of oppressiveness. This feeling is further accentuated by the industrial tones of noise and static that accompany the track. Above it all float the vocals, elegantly contrasting with the rest of the instrumentation, creating the final affect that linchpins the track’s timbre and style.
The end result is quite an accomplished single and one which has me excited to hear more from the band. Hopefully more specific details emerge regarding their upcoming album, Flaw, soon. When they do, we’ll keep you posted; this sounds like it might become one of 2020’s early hits. For now, check out “Shamed” and get sad; it’s winter, after all.