Peony - Vast Animals

Vast Animals is the debut album of North East two-piece, Peony. Consisting of William Rees on guitar and general noise-fuelled festivities and Ryan Gray on beat-them-bloody-and-blue drum duties, Peony tends to tread somewhere along the line of sonic assault. Having supported Maruja at Zerox in Newcastle - Maruja being one of the hottest prospects, if not THE hottest prospect, on the contemporary UK scene - Peony's sound and style has been trusted to warm up the space in which future greats will eventually take to; rolling out the rug, so to speak. Only time will tell as to whether Peony will have the favour returned - Vast Animals certainly helps their chances. 

Varmint Rifle single artwork

The lead singles, 'Varmint Rifle', album opener 'Low Low Low' and 'Man Il Uomo' alluded to the prospect of a raucous and slightly unhinged affair; Vast Animals definitely delivers on said prospect. 

The second track on Vast Animals, 'Peony', feels like waves subsiding after 'Low Low Low' builds up enough momentum to unlock Fort Knox. It's still home to the signature Peony bite; a twist in the tale. The latter half of said track delves into frantic territory. For a two-piece, Peony create quite a lot of noise. However, it's not the easy-to-make, turn-the-volume-to-ear-bleeding-and-blown-out-levels kind of noise. It's put to use and good effect; strategically planned and executed. Song structures are adhered to as to aid in the materials journey. 

Low Low Low single artwork

The rise and fall of Vast Animals aesthetical structure becomes noticeable - the ebb-and-flow of the material like a ship lost at sea; at the helm of the environment in which it finds itself. There's a rigorous backbone to the material - a bend-for-no-one kind of beauty. 'Dimitri', an exemplary case in point of the bend-for-no-one kind of beauty, smoothly, though scathingly, transitions into 'Dariella' - in a similar fashion, the lyrics to Dariella morph from 'don't react' into 'Dariella'. Rees' deranged shrieks further the unease and feel of dissatisfaction that the material emanates. 

Guitarist, William Rees, is an effective alchemy of Jack White's powerful vigour and Josh Homme's tendency to find himself outside of his own box - a subconscious tap has been left to drip; an uncontrollable energy meanders beneath at all times. 

Man Il Uomo single artwork

Vast Animals' sequencing is top-notch - tracks flow nicely into one another. A great example of Peony's scope and ability to switch things up - while also maintaining the pace and said sequencing - can be seen during the 'Man Il Uomo' - 'Monologue' - 'Park the Car' string of tracks. 

The rather turbulent waters that Vast Animals traverses smooth out on closer 'Vast Animals(Ivy's Lullaby)'. An air of reminiscence breezes on through. 

Vast Animals runs by its own set of rules; no external force has any say in the matter. Peony are a force to be reckoned with.

'Get my problems from the radio. Get my humour from in my bones.'