Chelsea Wolfe is back with her first full solo album since 2019, bringing a whole new sound to what we’re used to. Never someone to shy away from reinvention, She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She is a lesson in how to not lose any quality while finding a completely new sound. Gothic undertones lie throughout the album while building on electronic and industrial darkness.
“It’s a record about the past self reaching out to the present self reaching out to the future self to summon change, growth, and guidance” Wolfe explains. “It’s a story of setting yourself free from situations and patterns that are holding you back, in order to become self-empowered. It’s an invitation to step into your authenticity.”
There’s an ASMR feel to the vocals across the whole album, just further adding to the dark feel. Opener ‘Whispers In The Echo Chamber’ goes in and out bursts of noise with verses taking full advantage of the quiet vocals, before the choruses are hit with a wave of fuzzy guitars. Ending with an explosion of instruments it’s the ideal opening track.
Not lacking variation ‘House Of Self-Undoing’ takes things up a level with a much more electronic feel. The track takes on Wolfe’s expedience of getting sober after her last tour, speaking on the track she adds “When you become sober after years of numbing out, you feel, deeply: the moments of joy are euphoric, and the moments of pain are more visceral”.
‘Everything Turns Blue’ looks at escaping a toxic situation, with Wolfe expressing both the emotions of being stuck in the situation but also being free. Followed up by ‘Tunnel Lights’ which completely utilises the industrial aspects of the album, and has vocals being pushed more than on the most of the tracks. Wolfe describes explains the meaning of the track saying it’s about “actually living instead of just ‘getting by’” perfectly pairing with ‘Everything Turns Blue’.
Electronic drum beats provide the backbone to most of the record, but are most prominent on ‘Salt’ and closer ‘Dusk’. Both tracks have a similar feel to ‘Whispers In The Echo Chamber’ using the quiet moments to give the louder sections that extra kick. ‘Dusk’ may be the stand out track, building into yet another burst of noise with complete with fuzzy guitars and Wolfe’s vocal performance being the best on the album.
She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She is an album full of both questions and answers. There’s a need to listen to the album as an album with every track working with another to create something much larger. After a series of questions on the album, you’re left thinking what could possibly come next?
