REVIEW: Air Drawn Dagger - A Guide For Apparitions

After spending time selling out shows at venues such as the legendary Leadmill, and touring

alongside Lake Malice, Dream State and AVIVIA, electro-emo trio Air Drawn Dagger are

about to release their debut album A Guide for Apparitions, and their fast-growing cult-like

fanbase will not be disappointed. Produced by Neil Kennedy (Creeper, Boston Manor) this

record is everything we know and love about Air Drawn Dagger, but with some fun

additions. With their ability to weave together different genres together, 2025 is set to be

the year of the Dagger.

The acoustic intro riff that is “inspired by Lamb of God” features backing vocals, church bells, and the sound of rain to give an eery and unsettling feeling before it bursts into their single ‘Sanctifound’, throwing us straight into the mosh pit and introducing us to the album’s protagonists “The Martyrs”. Next up is ‘Sweatin’, which takes us musically on a journey through a more ethereal fantasy, while the lyrics keep the melancholy tone. Getting us headbanging mid song, it keeps listeners on their toes, never knowing which direction the record is going to take them.

Echoing out, we are taken to ‘Teeth’ which changes the vibe completely, bringing ghostly beats and an introductory rap before vocalist Maisie jumps in with a voice that could take down a ceiling. This is now back in darker territory, reminding us that this record is filled with macabre mysticism at its core. With a hard breakdown in the chorus, there’s going to be ample opportunity to not only mosh, but also jump and crowd surf when this is inevitably performed live. Finishing with those backing beats to remind you once again - this record isn’t just simple rock.

Straight into a dance/mosh pit we go when ‘Skinwalkers’ blasts into your ears, giving us their highest energy song yet. Alongside a heavy drumbeat, we are once again treated to a mid-song switch up to tease us with some backing screams, leaving the listener desperate for more. Need a breather after the first half of this record? You certainly think that you might have the opportunity when ‘Cadavers’ comes in and brings us into the emo section of the album. A slow, vocal start leads you to think this is the slow song all emo lovers know tends to happen mid-album, but instead it changes its energy almost instantly to something that is oh so incredibly fun to hear. With “what does it matter?” being repeated throughout this song, this gives the listeners that concert-leading chant.

Now back in the lore of witches and ghosts, we have a spooky beat, in line with its equally

spooky title ‘MaidenMotherCrone’. This kicks things off and takes us down the witches’ road to treat us to a heavy goth anthem almost comparable to Evanescence. Already released, ‘Castle’ starts with an Electric Callboy-esque chant going into a deep rock chorus, which once again shows us this bands ability to mix genres with ease. ‘Necromancer’ is the first song on the album you really feel Neil Kennedy’s influence, which gives us probably the weakest song as you can feel the change up from something ethereal and witch-like, to something a bit more boisterous, almost like it was written for another band and just handed over as a filler track.

We then jump back into what Air Drawn Dagger do best with ‘Coma’, which gives us

an almost rock opera-based track that is both heavy and cosmic, with Maisie’s vocals once

again shining through as the highlight of every song. Finishing this album, we have their

recent singles ‘Apparitions’ and ‘Bellyaches’, sneaking in some more screams and heavy

breakdowns - and even an excellent feature from Trash Boat's very own Tobi Duncan during the former! - to give us an ending that makes you wish there were another ten songs to

go.

Air Drawn Dagger have really brought their all to A Guide For Apparitions ,with each song

telling its own story and together creating a record full of multi-genre-infused rock that gives

the listener the experience of a haunted tale mixed with the chaos of a more ethereal sound.

Celebrating this release, you can catch Air Drawn Dagger at their biggest show to date on

Saturday 5th April at Corporation, in their hometown of Sheffield.

Score: 7/10

A Guide For Apparitions will be released on April 4th 2025 via Long Branch Records.

Words: Laura Hughes

Photo: Riccardo Cenci Media