A.A.Williams – Solstice
Release Date: 5th June 2026
Label: Reigning Phoenix Music
Bandcamp
Genre: Post-Rock, Alt-Metal, Dark Folk, Post-Classical.
FFO: Emma Ruth Rundle, Paradise Lost, Cult of Luna, Chelsea Wolfe, Ethel Cain, Darkher, Myrkur.
Review By: Paul Franklin
Thanks to TikTok’s malignant permeation into every corner of modern life, there is now a generation for whom ‘culture’ only exists in sub-30 second vignettes. TikTok didn’t invent the short attention span; it just turned it into a competitive sport.
So, it’s hugely gratifying when an album like this, the new release from British multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter A.A.Williams, quite rightly and quite reasonably asks that you sit your arse down and actually listen to the stunning emotional soundscapes being laid bare in front of you.
From the opening strains of Poison, Williams establishes the album’s central theme of transformation. Her voice, fragile yet resolute, carries an emotional weight that becomes the focal point (both of this song and the whole record). Around it swirl waves of guitar, piano and orchestral textures that rise and fall with reassuring patience. Nothing here feels rushed. Solstice unfolds deliberation that invites you in to feel its emotions rather than simply observe them.
This gentle progression means that when the heavier moments do hit, as on ‘rock’ tracks Wolves and Hold It Together, they do so harder, with more bite.
There is a distinct cinematic quality running through the record, particularly in the mid-album sequence of Outlines, I’ve Seen Enough and The Veil, where every crescendo and every silence feels meaningful.
What makes Solstice so compelling is its honest exploration of love, loss, self-doubt and renewal without sinking into cliché. It’s understanding that melancholy and hope can be two sides of the same coin and throughout the record shafts of light pierce the gloom.
If there is a criticism, it is that the album’s consistently unwavering dynamics can occasionally blur the distinction of individual tracks. Meaning that some moments do not leave as deep an imprint as others. Nevertheless, these are minor niggles about an album that succeeds magnificently on its own terms.
Solstice is another significant step forward for A.A. Williams, further cementing her reputation as one of Britain’s most distinctive and emotionally affecting artists. Beautifully crafted, deeply immersive and rich with feeling, it is an album that rewards patience. TikTok devotees look elsewhere!
(4.5 / 5)
