Words by Nick Mee
Discovered via http://musosoup.com
Warahenege is the alias of Manchester musician Praveen Somarathne, who wrote this four-track EP alone in his bedroom studio, one of the countless musicians who did likewise when facilities were shuttered to them in March 2020.
This wistful EP certainly captures that tone of enforced introspection, with opener ‘Strange New Cloud’ being the most successful in also evoking something of the world outside the window. The EP’s melodic showpiece, it has a dreampop aura that washes across the whole track, from the languid beat, melancholy vocals and ghostly keys to the sparkling guitar solo, which makes a welcome second appearance before the song’s end.
Elsewhere, ‘Black Smoke, Autumn Breeze’ deploys similar reverb-soaked techniques to a gently funky groove, while the title track, as delicate a piece of dreampop as you’re likely to hear, sets a tale of lovelorn vulnerability to pensive atmospherics. Lockdowns might be a thing of the past (we can only hope), but you get the sense that Warahenege have more than settled into their meditative vibe.
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