‘We took ourselves to the water’s edge, surrendered to the unknown’
Having spent six years living and working in Italy, my Irish brothers Unquiet Nights are here with a new single ‘Last Days of Rome’ and for me it cements the idea of how small the world is. Whilst reviewing the Imminence album, I took a listen to this, and the parallels are quite staggering.
We assess the ‘tension between the eternal and the ephemeral’ set against the backdrop of ancient Rome, we discuss the permanence and impermanence of life and all it holds. The axis of the world encompasses these very ideas too.
The collapse of an empire mirrors the collapse of our nervous system, our emotions squished to a pile of rubble, we trudge through the debris to see if there is anything worth salvaging. We find ourselves, damaged, raw, and fragmental nestled beneath the Angel of Grief, sanctified and petrified in unison.
I love the intricate, interwoven, classical notes which inspire the guitar work, there is power and passion in that fusion, it’s application and fulfilment is a testament to the fifteen years it took from inception to completion of this song. It is a shining example of how artists sit with a composition not ever really knowing where it will lead.
Unquiet Nights offer a unique insight into music-making, I find their work has a pull that sees the listener garnering interest and involvement in socio-political and philosophical discourse and analysis. The inclusion of historical reference and personal experience finds us relating to and understanding the band, the music and their purpose and measure in a world where our senses have diminished and our outlook gets bleaker by the second.
From nothing to an empire to a legacy, shared pain, defiance, resistance and solidarity.
I’ll let Funeral For A Friend have the last word here,
‘Archers in your arches, raise your fingers for one last salute, and bleed this skyline dry, your history is mine.’
Azra Pathan
Unquiet Nights – Last Days of Rome out now.