Words By: Bre Offenberger

Wales-based rock band Holding Absence have released a video for their latest single, “In Circles,” exactly a month before their sophomore effort, The Greatest Mistake Of My Life. What sounds like the atmospheric beginning of a metal song that inevitably goes rogue is actually a vibey adventure through the trials of tiresome day-to-day life — that culminates with otherworldly vocals.

Prolonged guitar strums and repetitive drum taps with a slight humming in the background open the track, setting an eerie scene. Frontman Lucas Woodland doesn’t beat around the bush at all, discussing how lifeless he feels and how tired he is of experiencing the same day over and over again. A perfect pandemic track, “In Circles” erupts in the chorus, as Woodland raises his voice to the level of the explosive drums to emphasize how fed up he is with the mundanity of his life — and how he only finds happiness by looking at the pictures of the loved ones he can’t see right now. The verses — excluding the irate bass that somehow fits well — return to the calmness of the intro, twinkling with guitars produced straight out of heaven. The sonic tranquility is juxtaposed, though, by the reflective and self-deprecating lyrics: “I was a fool to have thought I was worth / More than just a short life and a lifetime under dirt.” The track concludes with Woodland coming to terms with the fact that he will never escape himself and end up dying in the same headspace, fading out with a guitar that’s just as dreary.

The video opens with the band’s name in front of skies that turn from a sunset pink to a thunderstorm-ridden black to an overcast dusk to a spring-filled afternoon. Woodland materializes and is shown walking on a road through all four times of the day wearing a different outfit each time. Finally, when the chorus comes in and it’s nighttime, he raises his arm and finally shows a bit of emotion as he dispenses his pain into the hands of the viewer. In the verses, he returns to his lowly stroll. Right before the second rendition of the chorus, he grabs around his neck, gesturing to death as he asks his partner if they would be OK dying alongside him someday. At the end, Woodland walks back in the opposite direction, showing he may not be willing just yet to succumb to the pain.

Of the single, Woodland shares: “‘In Circles’ is a really subtly exciting song for our band. Lyrically, it commentates on the mundane and cyclical nature of day to day life… Pointing out just how dangerous it can be to live your life without ambition. With such a strong lyrical vision, we made sure that the song and video followed suit, playing out in an almost hypnotic fashion. We think this track is really special, and will hopefully be enough to encourage people to reach out of their lives a little bit.”

The Greatest Mistake Of My Life will be out April 19 via Sharp Tone Records. This third single follows “Afterlife” and “Beyond Belief,” and all three painstakingly give insight into the fluctuations of life. Holding Absence‘s album is already set to be one of the best of the year, so do yourself a favor and pre-order it now.