Giant Walker - Silhouettes (2024) Hi-Res

At first glance, it’s incredibly hard to know how to convey just what it is about Giant Walker that makes them so intriguing. I’ve sat here trying to compose this review, and after multiple false starts, I have landed on this analogy. Imagine, while out walking and just getting on with life, you stumble across a coin, you pick it up and it looks like an average coin, yet on closer inspection, it’s the most precious, wonderful coin you’ve ever seen. You want to hold it close and keep it at your side forevermore. Well, that’s Giant Walker in a nutshell.

They could, on paper, be any standard four-piece set up, but it’s the sparks of wonder that really set them apart. They have such a vibrancy about them, which is utterly intoxicating, and once discovered, it’s impossible to turn away from.

After seeing the stats for the band, the most used phrase for their sound seems to be ‘heavy prog rock’, but I don’t think that really does the band enough justice. For me, as much as there is a heavy rock vibe, it’s also more versatile than any sort of prog you would imagine. It has a vibrancy to it which does set it apart, and for lack of a more apt expression, I would head towards pop prog. The sound I feel has a bigger dynamic, and would easily appeal to a wider market, reaching out to pull a larger audience based on its zestier atmosphere.

With their new album, Silhouettes, the band have really stepped up and announced their claim to stardom. Each track is full of emotion while maintaining an upbeat essence. Vibrancy is the name of the game, with a hard rocking backline to solidify its quality.

It’s impossible to draw a comparison with any other band really, as Giant Walker are so uniquely themselves that they defy comparison. Yes, there’s an air of Paramore in the mix, but by the same token, that doesn’t mean they sound anything like Paramore. Perhaps it’s the angsty feeling in the lower moments, or possibly in the structure of several tracks, but that is where it ends.

There are also hints towards some post-rock throughout, but again, that doesn’t mean it’s a post-rock album. Somehow Giant Walker have managed to capture a vibe which sees them destined for commercial success as a hard rock act, but with a legitimacy that will push them far beyond a popular music demographic.

Tracks such as album opener Time To Waste and Make Me have an instant impact that will draw you in right from the offset. They have a swagger to them that is so mesmerising that it will be impossible to turn away. The mix of hard rock energy, and a clean sultry vocal will keep you hooked for every millisecond.

While these open the floodgates, they are so much more than a one trick pony, and other standout moments such as the title track, Silhouettes, and So You Say are so full of passion that they reveal the parallel in the band’s sound. While maintaining the elements of huge soaring choruses, and pulled back verses, it’s the additional whimsy in the outpourings that truly make the band shine.

At times there is a feeling of nostalgia, in the same way that Blues Pills take an old sound and update it, so too do Giant Walker throughout this whole experience. It feels old, yet new at the same time. Its charm is its warmth with a connection to the great sounds which have come before, without sacrificing the evolution of the dynamics.

One highlight for me is track five Halcion. Taking all the band’s most vibrant and intense tendencies, this is slightly heavier and has an urgency unlike any other. Guitar intensity is elevated and drums have a thunderous texture that is less obvious elsewhere on the album.

I’m also taken with Round And Round We Go, Which has a drudgy, dirtier feel to it. Again, it’s heavier in nature, and I think this is where the band excel for me. That isn’t to say that, by comparison, the rest isn’t so impressive, but as a heavy music fan, a darker vibe never goes amiss.

Even up to the album’s climax, the sheer magnitude of their vibrancy pulses through the speakers. There isn’t a moment where the love drops off, and this long-player is a real testament to just how great they are. It’s a hard rock fans dream; it’s vibrant, it’s heavy, and when needed, it’s dark and dirty. It’s full of emotion too, it’s joyous, hypnotising, and mesmerising in equal measure, and will leave you totally satisfied.

A real triumph, and I would urge any fan of hard and heavy music to go and check Giant Walker out, you won’t regret it, and that’s a promise.