Holding Absence – The Greatest Mistake Of My Life
Release Date: 16th April 2021
Label: Sharptone Records
Pre-Order/Pre-Save
Genre: Post-Hardcore, Post-Rock, Alternative Metal.
FFO: Speech Patterns, Time the Valuator, Thousand Below, Landmvrks, Bring Me The Horizon.
Review By: Ryan Shearer
Welsh trio Holding Absence have always had a gift. From their first single Permanent in 2017, creating emotionally moving music is something that appears to be second nature. 2021’s The Greatest Mistake Of My Life, the band’s second album is no exception.
The opener awake is little over a minute of emotive swell, an ever growing atmospheric piano piece that crescendos into Celebration Song, with the beautiful, soaring line ‘I’m alive’ by vocalist Lucas Woodland over a gargantuan wall of sound. Lucas’ melodies are absolutely bonkers – he plays with his range and flutters between notes (what feels) effortlessly. The drums sound like they were recorded in a huge room; the scale of all the instruments working together gives a sense of grandeur & theatre. The song ebbs and flows from high energy to sombre and reserved.
Afterlife is a hook-laden anthem with a simple piano melody and catchy guitar. It’s the catchiest track on the album with a warm tonality to it and follows a relatively standard structure with an acoustic bridge resetting the energy for an explosive final chorus and outro. In Circles is a moody track about the concept of humanity going through the motions. The infectious chorus line ‘People just go on and on in circles’ will be cycling around your head after hearing it a couple of times. Beyond Belief is bathed in positivity and hopefulness. The album uses these tracks to juxtapose the sombre alternatives. Die Alone (In Your Lover’s Arms) follows up with a much more melancholy vibe.
The final track Mourning Song is full of tension. There is an unease and rawness to the heavier sections and a foreboding quality to the build-ups. Lucas really channels emotion through his performance. The irresolute chord at the end is the icing on the cake, highlighting the tension until the bitter end. It is followed by the title track, The Greatest Mistake Of My Life, a short cover of the song by Dame Gracie Fields. The song holds a history in Lucas’ family and inspired the concept of the album.
The Greatest Mistake Of My Life is a truly mature and thought-provoking sophomore album that feels like a natural evolution for Holding Absence. All the pieces and emotional weight the band have always brought is on full display here. The 12 tracks feel cohesive and although there isn’t a huge amount of technical wizardry happening (the drums can sound a little beginner at times), everything works together to accomplish one goal – aim right for the heart strings – where it fully succeeds.
Production is where the songs are truly brought to life. The guitar tones are glistening with character and ambience sits gently underneath the instrumentation like a mellow, low fog that translates throughout all the tracks. It makes the entire album feel like a solid story with alternating moods and thoughts, like any good narrative should have. The album is wonderfully mixed, the vocals sitting firmly at the centre of attention but the other instruments get time to shine when they need to. There are some incredibly unforgettable tracks and a few that are still great, but less memorable (Drugs and Love comes to mind).
The Greatest Mistake Of My Life is an evocative journey in the most honest sense of the word. It will captivate you, move you and downright play with your emotions like no other modern band can. Highly recommended. 
(4.5 / 5)
