Lone Wolf – The Swan of Meander

It’s a sensual, euphoric and mystical sounding song. It’s very well written, and it somehow manages to get going and get into the swing of the song without the listener ever actually noticing that it’s happened. It’s a really soft yet uplifting song, and with a title like The Swan of Meander, well titled as well. The guitars in the background are more to provide an almost twinkling kind of effect, rather than put into the track as a backbone to the music, which is different yet enjoyable to listen to.

The percussion in the background sounds very unorthodox, almost like a machine ticking over in a factory. It gives the song a nice antithesis to it, the juxtaposition of the lighter music and the industrial sounds create something rather sensual and, to use probably the wrong word, ‘full-sounding’.

The mainstay or backbone of the sound of this song is the strings. They’re ever present, yet ever so subtle at the same time. It’s cleverly done, because if one were to take them away then the whole song would fall apart completely, and listeners would notice that they’re gone. Yet, a listener actually has to listen out for them to even notice that they’re there. Excellent production.

Vocally, the singing is meaningful and really quite chilling. They’re easy to lose track of, though, as a listener might be caught up in the cacophony of sounds in the background, and they don’t really have anything special going for them to make them stand out. This might be the only issue with this single, though.

On the whole, The Swan of Meander is a pleasant and, to use one of the best words to describe it, interesting sounding single. It’s got a lot going for it, and pre-empts what should be one of the most meaningful and progressive albums of the year.

Rating: 6/10 

Lone Wolf is:

Paul Marshall 

Written by: Sam Saunders