Armlock is a new Australian duo featuring Simon Lam and Hamish Mitchell, who were previously in I’lls (and Lam is half of Kllo), and they’ve announced their debut album: it’s called Trust and comes out on June 2 via Solitaire Recordings. They say:
“In some respects, Trust is a simultaneous documentation of progression and regression. A homecoming of sorts, influenced by the interim where we developed our skills as producers and our skills as artists. Armlock, as a vehicle, seems like returning full circle to where we started.”
On the themes of the lead single “Power of a Waterfall”, they say that it’s “the general narrative of your adulthood that’s drilled in from a young age, and the relentless boredom that comes from fulfilling that prophecy… how mundane things cascade you into a kind of madness.”
This mundanity of “maturity” is certainly palpable in lead single “Power of a Waterfall”, where they reflect on all the responsibilities they have now, and how they come raining down on you like the titular waterfall – but it’s not at all refreshing, just exhausting. “Power of a Waterfall” is undeniably a gloomy song, but there’s a resonance that comes from the way they turn this lament into a dream of being a better person, emphasised by a skeletal drum-and-guitar framework that they embellish with stylish production choices. It may not be cathartic in the LOUD sense, but it’s certainly validating to hear Armlock expressing the relatable struggles and finding some light in the strain of adulthood.
Watch “Power of a Waterfall” below.
Armlock’s debut album Trust arrives on June 2 via Solitaire Recordings (pre-order/save). You can find them on Bandcamp, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
