Hikaya is the latest EP from Belgian meatalcore band Reach the Shore. Though the album hit stores March 19, 2017, the band is seeing a renewed sense of success with their recent single from the record “Saddhu”. After hearing the single, I was drawn to learn more about the band and take a deeper look into Hikaya. And I am glad I did!
Reach the Shore is a Belgian metalcore band that formed in 2012. The band launched their debut album, Faith & Confidence, back in 2014. That album, and the bands sound in general, is progressive and has deep meaning, lyrically tackling several social issues. The album also laid the groundwork for the band’s style, which unlike most metalcore is significantly more progressive, leaning on double bass and heavy vocals and featuring very heavy and unique breakdowns.
Hikaya is a concept album that contains only 6 tracks logging 21 minutes duration. The album is heavy throughout and caught my attention. After I listened to it initially, I immediately replayed it 3 or 4 times. The album is heavy and keeps coming back for more, but has very forgiving peaks and valleys. Reach the Shore does a great job in building to the breakdown and making the heavy riffs the focus of the song. Another strong statement is that though the album is broken into six tracks, it is incredibly cohesive. Listening to the album straight through is like listening to a single 21 minute epic story.
After listening to Hikaya and discovering more about the band, Metal Thoughts reached out to Reach the Shore to learn more about the album, the band, and their future.
ST: Hikaya has been out for nearly a year, but with the recent release of “Saddhu” is still going strong. What has the reception been like for the band?
RTS: Yes! Our new album ‘Hikaya’ is still going strong and we still love playing it! Saddhu is the fifth song on the album and reception has been great. People loved the music video and the music!
ST: Hikaya is a concept album, all of the songs intertwine to tell one story. How did you decide to release “Saddhu” as a standalone single?
RTS: It is not a standalone single! We’ve released a music video for each song on the album so far! That means we already have 5 music videos out already! To quickly explain, Saddhu is taken from our new 6 track album called “Hikaya”, which means story/fable in Arabic language. It’s a conceptual album following a girl through her purification process: she’s from a greedy place, ruled by demons & she tries to reach the surface through a purgatory until she reach her moral revolution. She’s helped by a boy called Akhil. A lot of interpretation and meaning can be found through our visuals and lyrics.
ST: What makes Hikaya different from Faith & Confidence?
RTS: We think ‘Hikaya’ is definitely a more “complete” album. We’ve all learned from the things we had written on ‘Faith & Confidence’ and we wrote the songs of this album in a more professional & mature way.
‘Hikaya’ is one single piece of art. It is really a story that we tell and that story is felt through the instrumental as well. You start the first song and it doesn’t stop until the last second of the last song. By the way, we’re planning to release the instrumental version of the album very soon!
ST: Was the process for writing a concept album different than the approach you would normally take to a new album?
RTS: ‘Hikaya’ helped us find the way we wanted to write songs. Now everyone knows what he has to do, what he wants to do and what he wants from the other members of the band. So we’d say that the process wasn’t different but it was kind of new. Now we all have that “bond” and it’s something that is hard to get between 5 people, so we’re really happy!
ST: You have received some great props recently from Kerrang and Alt Press. What was the most surreal moment of promoting this album? Do any specific reviews or features stand out?
RTS: Oh yeah! Kerrang definitely gave us some great props and we thank them for that! The most surreal moment was our release show, in Brussels, in one of the most famous venues of the country (Ancienne Belgique). The show was sold out and it was the best night of our lives. We would do that again and again and again for the rest of our lives if we could.
ST: What is next for the band?
RTS: Great question! First, we finish the promotion of Hikaya. We still have one more music video to release and then it’s done. There’s also a guitar & bass playthrough coming out soon.
Also, we’re currently writing new songs. And they rock! Literally. They sound rock n’ roll baby. We’re turning into a rock band, I guess you can say it’s Reach The Shore 3.0. Some people will love it, some people won’t, but that’s what we like to do right now and I’m sure there will be more people who will like it than people who won’t.
ROCK. AND. ROLL.
ST: What should Spinning Thoughts/Metal Thoughts listeners know about Reach the Shore?
RTS: I guess you should know that we’re from Belgium and that the metal scene in Belgium is not that great for local bands. We’re doing our best to share the best music we can, but we would like to explore new countries, reach a new audience outside Belgium.
The only thing we could ask you is that if you like our music, send it to a friend, add it in your playlist, download it illegally, do what you want, just put a bit of Reach The Shore in your life. Thank you ♥
Have you jammed the latest album Hikaya from Reach the Shore? What are your thoughts on the Belgium natives? Leave it in the comments down below or hit us up on Twitter: @SpinThoughts!
TAGS: Reach the Shore
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