Angus Powell - “Black Water”
Photo by Gavin Hammond
It is very likely that you’ve already heard the songs of Angus Powell without even realizing it, considering that his music has landed sync deals with some very popular TV shows, including Criminal Minds, Elementary, and Bones. However, if this is your first time hearing of Powell, you are truly in for a delight because his latest track, “Black Water,” is simply one of the moodiest indie folk songs that we’ve heard in quite some time.
“Black Water” begins with some seriously raw acoustic guitar– in fact, if it were any more stripped-back, it would still be part of the tree from which the instrument was carved. Powell’s vocal enters the song, much the same as a flood, with his voice sweeping its way through the path that has been carved out by the guitar. At this point, any listener will already be able to imagine the track scored into the next summer blockbuster, the soundtrack of the next villainous origin story, or the anti-hero lost in trauma, preparing himself for revenge. There’s so much mood here that you can feel it coating the inside of your head as it enters your ears.
The music is darker than the water it describes. As it progresses, cinematic elements are revealed, such as distant, booming percussion and a rattling synth that vibrates just beneath the track’s current. As the song passes its midway point, the stormy clouds of “Black Water” break to reveal a moment of hope, as Powell’s voice is joined by some synthy vocal harmonies– while we generally prefer harmonies to be raw, the vocoder style utilized here completely serves the music. The song then briefly retreats to its sparsely-produced form before, like a wave, it crashes down on the listener with its full and glorious production. You do not want to miss this one, folks.
-TM