Red Vanilla – Days of Grey

On Days of Grey, Dundee's Red Vanilla have established themselves as a truly exciting new band on the Scottish scene

Album Review by Tara Hepburn | 07 Jun 2024
  • Red Vanilla – Days of Grey
Album title: Days of Grey
Artist: Red Vanilla
Label: self-released
Release date: 7 Jun

Days of Grey is the seven-track debut EP from Dundee alt-rockers Red Vanilla. An unrelenting introduction to the band, comparisons to Wolf Alice are well-earned; their influence is keenly felt on woozy opener Embers. This atmospheric track showcases the vocals of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Anna Forsyth, which are sweet and delicate here. It’s a soft launch into a solid collection of songs which kicks into high gear via the grungy guitars and galloping drums of Outside In, a 90s-inflected song about apathy and the claustrophobia of life itself – lyrical themes which persist across the record.

Sonically, the group channel the heft of major stadium rockers one minute on the rabble-rousing All These Better Things, before flipping the script seconds later with Velvet, a tender meditation on lost love ('Tell me if there’s comfort to be found / But only if it isn’t gonna let me down') which initially plays out over jangly indie guitars before building to a ragey close. Recorded with Kieran Smith of To Kill Achilles, the energy of live performance has really been captured here. On Days of Grey, Red Vanilla have established themselves as a truly exciting new band on the Scottish scene. 

Listen to: Outside In, All These Better Things, Velvet

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