W: Ben Murphy: I: Jacob Ray

Perching delicately on the edge of a descent into chaos, Opus Kink’s 'The Sweet Goodbye' eerily paces from track to track, tugging at passion from within the listener without remorse, never allowing themselves to settle. The record creates a terrifying, exciting world; building colossal highs, sedated moments of peace and shattering lows. 

With an opening track like ‘Come Over, Do Me Wrong’, the band emphatically defines the sound of the record to come, not diminishing the amount of surprises, however. It maintains an element of class and romanticism whilst remaining extremely raw and murky. The defining horns are thrown about in a beautifully orchestrated manner and gracefully kick off the album with this strong grungy funk fusion. 

The album cover, exhibiting a scene reflecting nothing but helplessness and misery, emphasised and stained by the black and white presentation, may lead you to think that the album would be something much more dull sounding than the chaotic and riveting display of woe that it is. This isn’t to take away from the cover, the confusing themes illustrated are clearly reflected in the overlap of presenting such profound statements in this excitable and suspenseful manner. 

The next few tracks continue to build on this feeling, showcasing their ability to be gutsy in playing around with their sound, whilst just as confident they will remain recognisable. The second track 'Will It Come For You' discusses a fear of finding your purpose, and asks a question, what if you don’t have one? The ‘It’ in question could be describing life, and its ability to strip one of their hopes and force them into a crevice they don’t want to be in. 

Serving as the final peak in the record, ‘Crucify’ is just another demonstration of Opus Kink’s ability to seamlessly blend their styles and have so much room to explore themselves, without veering from their recognisable power. The track begins as another, unearthly and jungly track, utilising stated influences of Fela Kuti and Tom Waits, similar to the feel of their other songs. As the song progresses, though, it turns into an almost apocalyptic but carefree singalong track reminiscent of large choruses by Geese and provides an untroubled, joyful closure. 

Of course though, Opus Kink are obliged to take it one step further. The finale ‘Oh Irony’ is a gentle, warm closer that picks up towards its end. It leaves you thinking, questioning yourself, and leaves space for the listener to appreciate the album as a whole and take in what they have experienced. 

The album is a huge step for Opus Kinks trajectory as they continue to build from the last EP ('Till The Stream Runs Dry') on this truly inspired sound that sits outside the lines drawn by the current alt rock scene. Ironically 'The Sweet Goodbye' only feels like the beginning of a long and unforgiving path where the band will continue to deliver hellish and beautiful surprises alike, keeping fans sharp, watchful and forever grasping for more