Life cycles through birth, death, and rebirth. Flames reduce objects to dust only for the wind to sweep them into the ether in another eternal form altogether. Meltt’s music resembles this natural sequence. The hum of distorted guitars dissolves into bright melodies carried by shimmering synths and soaring vocals. The Vancouver based band—Chris Smith [lead vocals, guitar, bass, keys], Jamie Turner [drums, percussion], James Porter [guitar, keys, bass, vocals], and Ian Winkler [bass, keys, guitar]—enable rock, alternative, and psychedelia to coexist in one creative ecosystem held together by airtight instrumentation and deft songcraft. All of these elements blaze brightly on the group’s second full-length offering, Eternal Embers [].
“By the end of the songwriting, we realized most of the tracks tied into themes of growth, decay, and rebirth,” James reveals. “With time passing, all of these things were on our minds. There’s also a lot of fire and water imagery. You’re going through these crazy, destructive, and dark moments and growing on the other side into new life.”
“To me, it seems like our lives lead towards central events,” Ian adds. “Everything after is a result of what happened.”
Collectively, the band members embrace and excel at discovering these creative inflection points. In the wake of the 2017 Visions EP, the group spiritually and sonically aligned on their full-length debut Swim Slowly. It yielded “Love Again,” which eclipsed over 9 million Spotify streams. In addition, “On Your Own” generated nearly 2 million Spotify streams followed by “Fool Of You” with almost 2 million Spotify streams. Throughout the global pandemic, the musicians wrote and recorded what would become the album in sessions with co-producer Kieran Wagstaff. Along the way, they formulated ideas separately. Eventually, they spent a month in a remote cabin together where they feverishly wrote and shored up the foundation of the record. They shared five tracks as part of the 2023 Another Quiet Sunday EP. Beyond tallying 1 million streams right out of the gate, OnesToWatch hailed the EP as “five songs that demand your attention.” However, everything only contributed to a larger statement.
“When we went to the cabin, there were a few running themes,” says Jamie. “We had similar experiences during COVID where we were all meditating on death and rebirth. It’s interesting how it individually shined through in our respective writing, but it overlaps in a very cool way. Everything fit together really well. There’s a balance of light and contemplation in one atmosphere.”
