The Bellwether Syndicate

Hailing from Chicago. The Bellwether Syndicate has released the single ‘Golden Age, as a teaser for their anticipated album, ‘Vigil & Vestige (album out April 28).

The Bellwether Syndicate is William Faith (vox, guitars), Sarah Rose Faith (vox, guitars), Philly Peroxide (keyboards, percussion), Stevyn Grey (drums), and Corey Gorey (guitars).

Six years in the making, the ‘Vestige & Vigil‘ LP comes nine years after their debut EP, “The Night Watch.”

“Golden Age‘ is a rare gift in that I received nearly the entire song in a dream… the beat, the guitar and bass melody, and the chorus lyric were all just there in my head when I woke up and, without saying a word to Sarah, I ran down to the studio to capture it before I lost it,” explains William Faith.

“It has a haunting quality which felt very nostalgic to me, so the lyric is really about the danger of getting lost in nostalgia and losing the present as a result. This is a conversation we have a lot, as so many people seem to stop looking ahead, content to rummage through the past. I’ve always said that tomorrow is way more interesting to me than yesterday, so this song warns about getting stuck there. As for the chorus, it’s anyone’s guess what it means, as it’s all a dream!”

Golden Age is indeed a rare gift, and we, the listeners, are the beneficiaries of that rare gift. The lyrics tell us about the golden age of information where the internet spreads “the truth” far and wide, and I am prone to “follow every echo I hear.”

I love this line from Golden Age; “The truth of what is remembered is yours and yours alone.” We take in the information from all around us, but in the end, we each have our take on history; it is yours and yours alone. “Steal every second and all it brings my friend.” There is no “alternative history” but I see the history as uniquely mine.

However, we all must “rise up from the ashes” of “the great and unwashed masses.” Have the courage to “swim against the tide,” to reject the narrative,” and “to break convention.”

Being retired and spending the vast majority of my time listening to music, the song “Dystopian Mirror” resonated with me. “Hiding out in this space,” “when every day is the same.”

In the end, “All Is Forgiven.”

As I listened to Vestige & Vigil again while writing, I felt an echo of Black Sabbath running through this album. Perhaps it is from “poisoning their brainwashed minds” or “Generals gathered in the masses.” Not plagiarism, just an influence, maybe, in my opinion. I could be wrong.

Whether Black Sabbath influenced The Bellwether Syndicate or not is of little import. The important thing is this, The Bellweather Syndicate rock, and they rock it hard. If you want hardcore metal music, I recommend the album Vestige & Vigil.

The full ‘Vestige & Vigil‘ album will be released on April 28.

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