“Empty promises” by Fermata Caesura is a traditional ballad that transports you to a Celtic world of relaxation while leaving you in a comfortable sadness, it reminds you of all the Empty Promises you’ve heard. “Empty promises” is that heartfelt song that awakens the soul and keeps listeners wanting more.
Fermata Caesura is a Wisconsin-based band consisting of Lisa on vocals, Cody on upright bass, Eli on guitar, and Thillman on cello. They met through an ad Eli placed on Craiglist, where he discovered his musical soulmates. A mutual admiration for artists such as Edgar Allan Poe, John Denver, Fleetwood Mac, Radiohead, Bon Iver, Iron and Wine, and The Civil Wars inspired the quartet to pursue their musical dream of combining poetry with classical string instruments and rock music and to take listeners on a musical journey while showing them they are not alone in this life that can at times appear bleak and full of loss.
Fermata Caesura is also a chamber-folk band with the intimate passion of a string quartet and the brazen audacity of a rock band. Fermata Caesura weaves a vibrant sonic texture that flows to the full peaks and valleys of our human existence, delicate and dark. Their new single “Empty Promises,” which was released on November 18, 2022, is a fever dream about the breakdown of a relationship. It asks, “Are we ever more than we were when we started?” knowing deep down that the answer is no.
“Empty Promises” begins in a traditional ballad style, with medieval strings that simply tug at your heartstrings. When the guitar work is combined with the angelic vocals, it becomes a concoction of instant sadness. The track builds to a crescendo, almost like a build-up for an amazing string solo around the 3-minute mark, which just sends the listener deeper into Fermata Caesura‘s melancholic and grey world. A grey medieval world populated by mystical creatures, wizards, and, of course, dragons.
“Empty Promises” feels massive in scale, rough and smooth at the same time, intimate yet distant. It’s both unsettling and peaceful. The song describes the slow decay and disintegration of a relationship that is rotting before your eyes, collapsing and unraveling. An incredibly morose and melancholy mood dominates the tone, the kind of somber emotional core that’s anchored and guided by the strings and really amplified by a glorious vocal performance.
However, when you listen to “Empty Promises,” you are immediately transported into a Celtic world of relaxation. This sounds like it would have fit right in with the BBC drama Robin of Sherwood from the 1980s. There are hints of Clannad in this track, as well as Fleetwood Mac, especially in the female lead vocals and harmonies. The layered vocals are effective, and the panned guitars are well recorded with an excellent stereo in each track. The drums, which appear about halfway through the track, fit perfectly in the mix. This is an exceptionally well-scored and performed song.
“Empty Promises” is absolutely brilliant, with an incredible arrangement that transforms the entire track into a story, or rather an experience. It was not an easy feat to pull off, but it was done with ease. This band has a unique synergy, layering all of their vocals on top of one another to create a prophetic voice that permeates all layers of emotional self-defense that the listener has. The vocals caress your mind with a warm touch as the strings tug at your heart, leaving you in a comfortable sadness, reminding you of all the ’empty promises’ you’ve heard in your life, with whispers in your ears and strings tugging at your heartstrings. Fermata Caesura has created a medieval prophetic tear-jerking, a mind-melting single that simply makes you want to cry.
“Empty Promises” by Fermata Caesura is an astonishing and compelling listen. This track is breathtaking at every turn, and we can’t wait to hear more from these world-class musicians. It is a heartfelt song that awakens the soul and leaves the listener wanting more.
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