Esben and the Witch: Violet Cries – review

The South Downs are made to sound very bleak on this Brighton trio's debut, a wilderness of darkening lakes, swirling mud and other ill portents. But if the usual goth tropes are present and correct, Esben and the Witch twist them into unusual shapes. Singer Rachel Davies's vocals – part Siouxsie Sioux, part PJ Harvey – only claim half your attention: it's the shifting backdrop of synths and guitars that really bring on the gloom. There are echoes here of post-rock, the more mournful strains of dubstep and, fittingly, the emergent dance genre, witch house.