When I moved home to the Philadelphia region after spending 18 years in the Seattle region, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The past, as they say, is complicated. Mine especially so. That 3,000-mile distance was a nice comfort zone in some ways. Thankfully, most of my fears went unrealized upon moving home. One of the nicest experiences has been reconnecting with a childhood friend who teaches vocals as well as fronts a local band. The band is Shadow of the Mountain, founded by John and Alyssa Martin. The vocals are heavily influenced by 70’s Heart with guitar shredding galore courtesy of John Martin. This review has been a long time coming and so I was able to connect with Alyssa and John to learn about the creation of their debut release as Shadow of the Mountain.
The first thing that struck me was the deeply personal nature of the lyrics. Alyssa expounded on this to me via email: “Lyrically, the songs are a journey of healing and are filled with all the emotions that come with waking up and realizing that there’s a better way to live and refusing to suffer any longer. It’s about finding freedom to be yourself and have your own thoughts and emotions. It’s like I’ve taken the pulpit to share my proclamation of freedom with all the bumpiness of figuring out who I actually am.” The vocals highlight Alyssa’s dynamic range and are emotive. The way she enunciates certain phrases makes the listener feel what she is saying. It is a gift that she is sharing with music lovers. Instrumentally, the band is tight. Everything locks into a groove. You know how it is – once you hear these songs, it is like they’ve always existed. John was able to share this about the creation of the album: “The concept of the album wasn’t premeditated. It came about after I bought my first Les Paul guitar after being a lifelong Fender Strat player and that guitar inspired a whole bunch of riffs which ended up culminating into the original songs that ended up on the EP. It was right at the time of Covid, so everybody was encouraged to stay inside. You weren’t going about your normal business, so I had extra time to write and record demos night after night, and then ended up creating that album inadvertently. I would make the music and then Alyssa would listen and get a vibe for lyrics and melodies.”
I wondered what it was like to be in a band with your spouse. I had visions of the infamous fights amongst brothers in The Black Crowes (Chris & Rich Robinson) and Oasis (Liam and Noel Gallagher). Or maybe ABBA or Fleetwood Mac where it was drama galore. Thankfully, that isn’t the case with Shadow of the Mountain. Alyssa shared with me her philosophy on being in a band with her spouse: “I’m lucky to have John as my writing partner. He’s a life liver – hiking, foraging, surfing, snowboarding, camping, mountain biking. He was raised without religion, so music and nature have been a constant in his life. Whereas I am more of the bookworm, constantly studying philosophy, psychology, and spirituality.” The great thing about this story is that the band’s music lives up to the background. The songs are great, every one of them.
The album starts off with Broke Me. A statement of intent and a sign of the greatness contained within. Instantly memorable guitar shredding setting for the stage for Alyssa’s vocals. We are firmly within hard rock territory here with flashes of metal glory. Lyrically, these songs are all about Alyssa’s healing journey. “Filling inside of me / Picking up the pieces of broke me, broke me / Picking up the pieces now / Build another a fire now.” People Of The Ocean sounds like a song title that Neil Young would come up with. Obviously, I liked it before I even heard it. This song again features stunning musicianship and vocals – there’s a wordless bridge that is instantly memorable. This is one of my favorites on the release. Alyssa told me more about this song: “I improvised the lyrics during band practice and later had to figure out what they meant. The words expressed what I was dealing with on an emotional and spiritual level. In that song, “They’re turning wine to water” alludes to religions that take the magic out of life. “They’re begging for it now” is how we humans seem to always look outside ourselves for truth and how we’re begging for the answers… as if there are ordained individuals that have the secret knowledge of how to live. In the final verse, I sing to the part of us all that is luminous and encourage us all to expand our intuition to show us the answers we seek. – “pineal open wide, inner skies you’ll see.” All the answers are within us. Astral is such a cool jam. Almost a Rage Against the Machine vibe in the instrumental opening. Alyssa’s vocals kick in and it takes the song into unexpected places. Deeply intellectual and spiritual lyrics: “I connect to the earth / Now I know it’s my mother / I see the light in everyone / I knew we were brothers.” The guitar solos are never intrusive – the complement and enhance the rhythm and vocals. Sister Mantis was written from the perspective of Alyssa’s inner child and is her attempting to break free from expectations and living life on her terms. It’s quite a song. An incessant guitar riff holds the proceedings down while the band builds an impressive cacophony around Alyssa’s vocals. “Why can’t you break free / Let the real you be.” Coyote Tricks closes this release in a masterful way. Alyssa broke the song like this: “With Coyote Tricks, it’s that relationship with a person, religion, or institution where they keep you hanging on the line waiting for the payoff that never comes. And it’s abusive. When you’ve had enough, it’s time to get back to that raw emotion that puts us in touch with our intuition – our internal guidance. “It’s emotion, it tells me where to go.” And when we nurture that connection it’s a source of real inner peace – “It’s my devotion, honey-like inner truth.” The song encapsulates everything that came before. Guitar virtuosity, emotional vocals, the band totally in sync – it is another winning song. “It’s written all over my face / Livin’ is better than dyin’.” I agree.
You can follow the band and secure a physical copy of the album here. Stream, buy, spread the word – there’s a new hard rock band in the Philly ‘burbs that is destined for greatness. Check ‘em out!
Verdict: Stunning Debut
For Fans of: Heart, Led Zeppelin, 70’s Aerosmith, The Runaways, Jefferson Airplane
Tracks:
- Broke Me
- People Of The Ocean
- Astral
- Sister Mantis
- Coyote Tricks