Alternative Rock from Solamente

Coming out of Washington, DC, Solamente has been forging a thoroughly gripping musical output in the alternative rock sphere for nearly a decade. Founded by songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Raza S. Mahmood, the project combines heavy guitars, melodic vocals and grooves with profound lyrical explorations that glance at themes from despair and loss to redemption and determination. It’s a formula that began with a debut that was as engrossing as it was ambitious and has since grown into an increasingly spectacular body of work.

Solamente was first unveiled back in 2016 with the release of Savor the Dissonance, a debut record born out of Raza’s earliest songwriting efforts, recorded and captured entirely in-house. Produced, mixed and mastered at Skylab Studios in Florida, the album showcased a DIY style but also revealed a talent for combining thick guitar riffs with punching rhythm and emotive vocal delivery. Themes of personal struggle gave the record its context and marked Solamente as a must watch project with a sonic vision unlike any other.

After a brief hiatus, Solamente returned in 2020 with a series of singles leading into its second full-length, Mere Nal, presenting a punchier, more direct sound. The upcoming third Solamente album, Requiem: Grief in Five Stages, is set to land on Halloween as a concept record exploring the process of grief. Structured as a sonic dissertation, each track captures one of the five stages: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance, cut with short interludes to deliver an LP designed to be experienced as a complete journey.

Ahead of the full release, Solamente has shared its lead single titled “Storm Corrosion,” the song representing denial, the first stage of grief. Wrapped up in an extraordinary alternative rock soundscape that flows with elements of shifting rhythms, metal riffs and progressive rock aesthetics, it’s an incredible sonic voyage packed full of twists and turns. Brought in by Raza’s rich vocal delivery which glides above the twang of clean guitar plucks and rustling shuffle of snapping drums, he casts an immersive scene of atmospheric textures and rising musical tension.

Swelling into an epic chorus of charging electric guitars and pouncing drums, the impact of lively riffs is offset by smooth vocal layers which stitch delicate melodies into the driving musical fabric. Flowing with passages of hazy instrumental flickers, developing arrangement and soulful backing vocalisations, “Storm Corrosion” sees Solamente serve up an astonishing rock ride that’s wildly original, utterly captivating and truly exciting all at once.

Reaching a rousing breakdown of rolling drums, swaggering riffs and bright lead notes, it’s a sensational display of the artist’s pure creativity and superb musicianship panache. With Requiem: Grief in Five Stages arriving imminently, we can’t wait to see what else this groundbreaking rock act has in store next. With Requiem: Grief in Five Stages, Solamente is secure to confirm its status as an artistic project able to frame weighty concepts, capable of pairing heavy sound with thematic quality while leaving its mark as an enduring voice in modern rock.

Listen to Storm Corrosion below

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