SONG REVIEW: Spiritwalker - Hornet's Nest
Spiritwalker explode onto the music scene with their debut single “Hornet’s Nest”
Written by JD Walker
Have you ever heard a song from a new band and couldn’t believe how good it was, especially for being their very first single? That’s without a doubt the case for Spiritwalker. The North Carolina-based duo recently unveiled their debut single “Hornet’s Nest”, an absolute riff fest of a song that’s sure to launch the project into the limelight in no time at all.
“Hornet’s Nest” starts with a djenty yet melodic riff reminiscent of early Polaris or Thornhill before kicking into a high energy verse. The verse quickly transitioned into a massive chorus that fully displays the vocal range of the group. It’s hard to decide which element of the instrumentation is the best, as the guitars, bass, and drums worked in perfect synchronicity with each other while vocals brought enough elements of both clean and unclean delivery to remain accessible while not compromising on the heavy drive of the song.
What’s truly amazing about Spiritwalker is that when it comes to the music itself, it’s all just one guy. Brandon Marlowe writes and records all elements of the music (including vocals), and his creative partner Rush Dittbrender is focused on the visual aspect of the band including music videos, aesthetics, and branding. The video for “Hornet’s Nest” certainly showcases Dittbrender’s talents, as the video makes the absolute most of a DIY setup and even alludes to the fact that every aspect of the song itself was written and performed by Marlowe.
What Spiritwalker does very well is take a cohesive idea and execute it perfectly - the song and video never seemed eclectic or out of sync with each other which shows the chemistry between Marlow and Dittbrender. The song itself is impeccably written and could stack up to any of the bands that are gaining massive popularity today, and the group would fit seamlessly on a tour with larger acts such as Polaris and Thornhill. The branding aspect of the group is second to none and the aesthetic of the project matches well in both the auditory and visual realms.
“Hornet’s Nest” serves as a benchmark for how a band should launch a new project - in a day and age where many artists are launching projects in the same way that Spiritwalker have, it’s important to get every aspect of the initial release right (especially the branding and aesthetics behind the music itself). Spiritwalker have a powerhouse duo in Marlowe and Dittbrender, and it’s impossible to measure just how far the group will go if they stay on this path.