Watching Worlds Collide Esthesis

• 1Amber06:46
• 2Place Your Bets07:23
• 3Skimming Stones05:12
• 4Wandering Cloud06:00
• 5Vertigo05:00
• 657th Street12:00
• 7Through My Lens08:07
• Total Runtime50:28

Info for Watching Worlds Collide

Esthesis is a progressive & alternative rock project by French multi-instrumentalist Aurélien Goude. The music is characterized by many influences (british rock, film score, jazz, ambient, metal, electro...) and primarily based on emotion and ambiences.

"In 2020, the French band Esthesis won the reader's poll of the renowned British "Prog Magazine" in the category "Best Unsigned Band". In the same year, the quartet was able to impressively justify these laurels with their debut album "The Awakening". The sound of mastermind/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Aurélien Goude and his colleagues, which was composed of various sources of inspiration, sometimes powerful and sometimes tantalisingly quiet, was met with enthusiasm by international critics. Reviews repeatedly made comparisons with acts like Nosound or the late Pink Floyd. Then again, Esthesis were brought into play as potential heirs or legitimate successors to the - so everyone believed at the time - retired Porcupine Tree.

To anticipate: The seven pieces of Esthesis' second album, spread over a good 50 minutes, even surpass their predecessor. Amber", which begins with ambient, then slightly jazzy sounds, is a real highlight right from the start. The track quickly turns into a driving, grooving, sometimes restrained atmospheric rock song full of authentic emotionality, which is finally refined with a brilliant solo by guitarist Baptiste Desmares.

The gentle, yet steadily driving "Place Your Bets", which is determined by Arnaud Nicolaus' excellent drumming and enchanted by a surprising saxophone in the second part, may come across a little more inconspicuous in this respect than the opening number or the piano ballad "Skimming Stones", which becomes wonderfully broad-walled in the last third. Nevertheless, it doesn't fail to have an effect, just like "Wandering Cloud", which, after two and a half minutes of dreamy art rock, is suddenly torn open by dirty guitar runs and then fat brass sections.

Crisp guitar riffs and another excellent solo can also be experienced in the instrumental "Vertigo", otherwise presented as a sophisticated pop song, which shines at the end with a smart funk interlude. The finale of an entertainingly varied and pleasingly homogeneous sounding album is "Through My Lense", which shifts playfully between epic and broadly rocking as well as introverted and thoughtful passages. Before that, however, we are allowed to enjoy the exactly twelve-minute showpiece of this demanding collection of compositions: "57th Street" - into which Goude packs so much emotion vocally that it almost becomes eerie. There are clever jazz elements here too, which fit perfectly coherently into the mix of proggy rhythm work and walls of sound created by keyboard and guitar. A real audio experience." (Oliver Kube)

Esthesis:
Aurélien Goude, keyboards, vocals, lap steel guitar (4, 6), guitar (2), harmonica (7), drum/FX programming (3), bass programming (6)
Baptiste Desmares, lead guitar
Marc Anguill, bass
Arnaud Nicolau, drums

Produced by Aurélien Goude and Misty Tones

Esthesis
is a progressive & alternative rock project formed and led by French multi-instrumentalist Aurélien Goude (music, lyrics, keyboards, vocals, guitars, bass and other stuff). The current line up is composed of three other musicians : Baptiste Desmares (lead guitar), Marc Anguill (bass) and Arnaud Nicolau (drums).

Esthesis music is characterized by many influences (british rock, film score, jazz, ambient, metal, electronic music...) and primarily based on emotion and ambiences. After a first sold out EP in 2019 ("Raising Hands"), Esthesis released a debut album in November 2020 ("The Awakening"). "The Awakening" has been acclaimed by many rock magazines around the world and Esthesis won the Prog Magazine Reader's Poll in December 2020 ("best unsigned band 2020"). ​

A new single, "Place Your Bets", has been released on 15th June 2022, with a brand new music video. The track will feature on the upcoming and highly anticipated album "Watching Worlds Collide", to be released on 19th August 2022. The new Esthesis album will be produced and distributed by the independent label and music production company Misty Tones, founded by Aurélien Goude.

This album contains no booklet.