The Vespertine Kind: “Winterheart” – a truly hypnotic experience

April 29, 2018

“Winterheart” by The Vespertine Kind is to me a very voyeuristic experience. You can almost hear Graham Iddon’s thoughts dropping on the microphone. It’s blatantly beautiful. The piano is warm and touching, gently filling the room alongside his vocals that seem to never want to leave his mouth. That is where the production ends. From the start you journey with The Vespertine Kind into a fantastic land of inner thought, hushed melancholy and reflection. The song delightfully twists, waiting to be resolved, with Graham holding onto every note, and then gently sliding into luscious liquid harmonies.

The Vespertine Kind artwork by Arilson Ramos Tourinho

The music is full of calming eloquence from someone who knows well of rare beauty and how to grasp its occasional opportunity. “Winterheart” sounds like soft pillows of angel feathers, undoubtedly serene and showing Iddon’s deep vision of passionate longing.

“Winterheart” has the power to absorb you completely, if you let yourself. When you listen to it, you’ll initially be in awe of the majestic but minimal piano-driven soundscape but by the end your attention always wanders back to Graham Iddon’s soothing voice.

Not only does his voice leave such as an impression, the lyrics he sings carries a thoughtful message. Whereas most singer-songwriters reach their moments of utter beauty with the falsetto sound, Graham is able to exude emotion in various ranges of his voice, which also helps establish striking tonal colors throughout the song.

The song can serve the dual purpose of either being, light and relaxing, or tense and emotional depending on how the listener is relating to it. You could listen to this with a pair of headphones on, all alone at 3 am in the morning, regardless of whether you’re deeply in love, or seriously having problems maintaining that relationship.

A lovely, lilting melody, and rich, affecting vocals, make this a truly hypnotic experience. The music is warm, the voice always pulling at your heartstrings.

The Vespertine Kind – Photo by Andrew Medhurst

“Winterheart” is a song made by a talented person that any musician or music listener should enjoy. The accessibility to this record is simple, because it is representing emotions or feelings that anyone can relate too. Simply put, this is some of the most intimate and haunting music I’ve heard this year.

Artists this sensitive are gifts to the world. There is something exquisite and enlightening about indulging in The Vespertine Kind’s artistry. “Winterheart” is an artist fully realizing his potential and expressing it. Ephemeral, romantic, insidiously charming and alluringly poetic.

MORE ABOUT: The Vespertine Kind is an ambitious new project very recently created by Graham Iddon, the previous front man of Raving Wild. He is endeavoring to consolidate precursory compositions with new work whilst utilizing newly acquired techniques, requiring major restructuring and additional adaptations stylistically. After much consideration and deliberation he is currently amalgamating folk and ambient elements for a new fusion entirely to songs heard under past ventures.

He plans to release several new singles this year including “Winterheart” which he describes as the most relaxed and reflective of his new efforts. The project name has intrigued several of his fans, and he explained that it stemmed from a shift in sleeping patterns. He would find himself flourishing and being artistically active at the time of day when others were winding down, often to his own annoyance.