Review: Frayle ‘Heretics & Lullabies’
Having been a fan of Frayle for the last few years, when the opportunity came up recently to review the latest release, Heretics & Lullabies, I jumped at the chance. I was already aware of their cover version of Lana Del Ray’s Summertime Sadness, so I was eager to see what other surprises awaited me as I let the album unfold on my stereo.
Right from the outset, I just want to say that for me, this has been an album that has grown and grown. Upon my initial listens, it didn’t instantly grab me, and it wasn’t until I really dug in that its true majesty unfolded. At first glance, I didn’t really pick up on the subtle nuances, and at face value, I felt like a lot of it was the same concept over and over… and then I got it.
This is an album that is subtly dark, and it isn’t until you really give yourself to it that you can truly learn to look beyond and worship it for its elegant majesty. The combination of those serenely ethereal vocals draped across a darker, sonic undercurrent gives an experience that stays with you long after the album closes.
For context, when I say I’ve been a fan for the last few years, the Frayle album 1692 from 2020 is proudly nestled in my vinyl collection, and the vinyl EP Dead Inside from 2019 is kept safe in a closed off cabinet, safe from prying fingers and cat claws. Very much top of my list of acts that I still need to see live, I’ve loved Frayle for a long while, so when any new material arrives, it takes a while for it to firmly seep into my soul alongside previous releases. This time around it took a little while longer, but the journey was worth the arrival.
As for the album itself, Heretics & Lullabies is a ten-track ritual that, from start to finish, never lets up in doomy sombre eloquence. As it progresses, it becomes more and more monumental, in a way that is almost undetectable, and just when you expect it to ease off, is when it’s at its most potent.
Summertime Sadness is the second track on the opus, which I thought was an unconventional place to slot it in, but in the bigger picture, it may have gotten lost later on during the experience, so it’s probably better that it’s earlier and doesn’t go on to be the definitive moment of the album. It isn’t a bad cover either, as it embraces the original without deviating too much and adds an extra layer of depth, making it darker in tone.
Elsewhere on the album, there are some real treasures to be unearthed, right from the album opener Walking Wounded until the closing track Only Just Once.
An incredibly accomplished album – equal parts dark, sinister and beautiful…
Walking Wounded gives a snapshot of Frayle in 2025, and for those unaccustomed to the band’s sound, this will quickly bring you up to speed. It’s a loud, drudgy affair, dripping with chuggy guitar, hard, punchy drum and basslines, along with a vocal which will leave you intoxicated. Soft and ethereal atop the gloom, it is an otherworldly trip for sure, the perfect soundtrack for the darkly gothic lover in your life.
On Boo and Heretic, tracks three and nine respectively, I couldn’t help but be drawn to Lacuna Coil at times, but more in style than in sound. I think it’s the mix of the dual male and female vocal over a hard-edge chorus that does it. It’s so lusciously created and sends shivers down the spine each time it happens.
I also gravitate towards track four, Demons, which truly shows the versatility of their sound. Mixing the heavy with the breakdowns is absolute genius, and whenever the heavy drops off to focus on the vocal, it’s exquisite. The addition throughout of the line ‘I’m a fucking monster’ really adds a sense of unity to the listener, as let’s face it, we all feel like that every now and then.
The mid-section of the album is where the band solidifies their sound, and even though on the surface these may sound similar, upon closer inspection, it’s these that have even more subtle nuances. By the time we’ve passed Heretic and stumbled upon Only Just Once you would think this would be the time to drop back and tie it all off nicely, but on that you would be wrong.
Only Just Once is the climax, so it should be where things ease off, but I think the reality is it’s all led to here, and this is the culmination of all the groundwork that’s gone before. More industrial in sound than elsewhere, it takes parts from previous tracks and squeezes it all together to devastating effect. It isn’t heavier or more abrasive, but provides the best snapshot of the band for all to see.
An incredibly accomplished album – equal parts dark, sinister and beautiful – Heretics & Lullabies should be the next album you seek out for a trip into the darkness; you won’t be disappointed.
Label: Napalm Records
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Lee Beamish
