Honestly, where has the time gone? Last time we graced The Empty Page on our blog was back in 2022! Those two years have flown really quickly, but the Manchester based duo hasn’t slowed down one bit. They are still loud, proud, exciting and as socially involved as ever. Maybe even more so as they released their second album “Imploding” in May this year and it is a brilliant mixture of political minded grunge and left wing, feminist old school riot grrrl punk/post punk.
The Empty Page album cover
We truly regret not having enough time to fully review this album, as this is a record you have to have in your record collection. The band will support our darlings, A VOID in London in a couple of days so we thought this is a perfect opportunity to look at the band’s latest single.
“I’m a White Hot Blade (Witches Are Wicked)” is the second single released off “Imploding” and it’s my personal favourite track. The song is about how powerful women have been demonized and vilified throughout history, with many of the most talented and educated females ending in jails or at the stakes. Despite centuries of denigration and slenderness, women are still tirelessly fighting against prejudice, violence and patriarchy, standing tall with the most vulnerable groups in our societies.
A short digress if you please. As a feminist blog, we regularly receive degrading and insulting comments on social media. Indieterria is a female run page and this simple fact, seems to be really upsetting for some people. Our LGBTQI+, minority and working class friendly website covers bands and artists that stand on the right side of history, supporting those who often have no voice or no representation in the male dominated music business. If you are reading this and you are somehow offended by it, feeling faint or scared that we support grassroot independent movements (often political and socially engaged), then kindly shunt off, to quote The Ninth Doctor. We care a lot about your fragile egos, so you will be better off somewhere else. Try Twitter for example.
Now, having said that. We can now return to the music. “I’m a Hot White Blade” is a powerful track (sorry I don’t really like the word anthem), standing at 3 minutes and 22 seconds. It was mixed and produced by Morton Kong at EVE Studios in Stockport, and then mastered by Cicely Balston at Air Studios in London.
Band photographed by Liam Maxwell
The song starts slow – with minimal instrumental accompaniment (mostly drums and keys) and powerful yet serene vocals from Kel Page, the band’s lead singer and guitarist. Faster tempo kicks in at one minute mark with the arrival of chorus and guitar riffs. Here is where Kel truly shines, showing off her impressive voice range and very melodic timbre. “I’m a Hot White Blade” reminds me a bit of Muse x Suede from “Dog Man Star” era x Swedish alternative rock outfit KENT from their “Hagnesta Hill” days (early 2000’s). It has this strangely peculiar, very airy atmosphere, kinda “open air” feeling, almost like it was recorded in a flower meadow rather than in a building in the Greater Manchester area. It is hard to describe it, but this elusive, wonderful, shoe-gaze’y, almost magical layer lingers somewhere in the background when you are listening to the song alone, but comes out in its entire, eerie beauty if you watch the video at the same time. I’m very surprised how well it goes with the typical hard rock drumming and heavy guitars. I have seen reviewers calling this track a ballad, but I think this is a bit of a misleading description. The song is built on a moderate-faster-moderate tempo scheme, which is way too fast for a classical ballad but not fast enough for what I would consider a lively piece. I’m happy to place it somewhere in the middle (andante) on the tempo scale.
Vocals are absolutely brilliant in this track. Kel is a brilliant singer, but her delivery here is top notch. She has a great range and very melodic timbre, she knows how to switch between sweet and aggressive tones. The repeated background harmonies are probably my favorite parts giving the song a lot of character and a healthy dosage of extra radio-friendliness.
“I’m a White Hot Blade” has a distinctive Radiohead-esque vibe, a bit of Morrisey or maybe rather The Smiths in there too. Indie, art rock, late Britpop comparable to Geneva or Marion and a lot of northerness (if that is even a word – all mixed up to create something beautiful, haunting and unforgettable.
Camille Alexander, the lead singer of French-British group A VOID directed the song’s video. She is a very experienced videographer having directed and produced all her own videos, plus she also worked with many independent artists such as Mango in Euphoria (“Can’t be Cured” and the upcoming “Lovestruck”), Seven Red Lions (“I wanna Tell You”), Minatore (“Boys Tell Lies”) or NATA (“Just Fun” and “Wake Me Up”). Camille has a very unique style, she often uses soft colours, hazed close up takes, blurred background and fairy tale like sceneries. The video to “I’m a Hot White Blade” was filmed at Ember Ironwork in Skipton and in the woods surrounding the magnificent Skipton Castle. It shows the band playing inside the forge, Kel hammering and shaping the titular blade and taking a stroll between trees on what seems like either early sunrise or sunset.
A VOID, Mango in Euphoria, Sun (brutal pop from France) and The Empty Page will play at The Victoria Dalston in London on Thursday 29th of August. The doors open at 7:00 and the after-party DJ set will be brought by Terra Peas.
Tickets to Sonic Summer Saucisson can be purchased at:
https://dice.fm/event/l8advr-sonic-summer-saucisson-2024-29th-aug-the-victoria-london-tickets
Follow The Empty Page on socials:
https://theemptypageband.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thmptypg
https://twitter.com/thmptypg
https://www.instagram.com/thmptypg /
https://www.youtube.com/c/TheEmptyPageofficial
https://www.tiktok.com/@thmptyp g
https://theemptypage.bandcamp.com/
https://soundcloud.com/the-empty-page
https://open.spotify.com/artist/1qWwVAQahrqNPgG8pEkcwM?si=bllLFi8wQyikVgIpdZTAhA&nd=1
Rita Dabrowicz
Indieterria 