While traveling down the dimly lit corridors of the mind, The Midnight Vortex’s new single, “Run,” haunts your psyche with a paranoia-inducing style of gritty, grungy blues. After a yearlong hiatus since releasing “Long Way Ahead,” the London-based band makes their 2023 return with a song about staying one step ahead of an ever present terror from within. Amplified by lead singer Bri Macanas’ electric vocal range, “Run” powers up with a healthy dose of flight over fight in response to losing bits of your sanity.
At the onset, “Run” begins like a deep, bass-driven blues rock track. Eventually, it reveals its true form as a menacing, grunge covered, fear monster. As it moves along, it feeds off of the inherent anxiety it produces and becomes downright untamed. Within its own progression, “Run” slides from disquiet contemplation into the harried desperation of having to flee what will drag you down.
Previously on “Long Way Ahead,” Macanas let her naturally smoky and bluesy lilt do all of the heavy lifting. On “Run,” she turns in an equal parts intoxicating and vicious performance. It puts you under a spell before jarring you wide awake with each soul piercing vocal run. On this track, Macanas delivers a powerhouse performance that shows off her complete, mesmerizing range.
Altogether, “Run” is a hearty colossus of a track that feeds off the dread of backsliding into unhealthy habits. It knows where it has been and there’s no going back now. Whether it is the grungy intensity or evocative vocals, “Run” creates an unrelenting, uncompromising sonic experience.
Written by Travis Boyer
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