Released: March          Genre: Indie / Rock         Metacritic Rating: 79       CRM Rating: 9/10

A surprise in almost every regard, Reverie Lagoon: Music For Escapism Only saw Seahaven continue to grow as artists, blossom even. A delightfully relaxed and absorbing listen, the bands third record was a sharp and sweet departure from the rock / post-hardcore of earlier releases, whilst losing none of the bands appeal. As well as falling at number 10 on my list it also holds the position as the most accurately named record of the 2014 – this is indeed music to escape through – and I willingly have time after time after time. There’s a wistfully endearing quality to the record which makes it both breezy and blissful in nature, sombre yet triumphant from the offset, with the heavier Flesh the only real departure on a record which is indeed a lagoon.

Be it on the always soothing Silhouette (Latin Skin) or the ribboning Karma Consequential each of the ‘fuller’ tracks seemed to encouraging a tranquil, relaxing response, and there’ve been plenty of times this year when I’ve been stressed and found a beautiful sort of comfort in what is arguably the most calming alternative release of the year. Reverie Lagoon: Music For Escapism Only was an oasis packaged and waiting to be opened, like a pop out tent, or a cool breeze when you step outside on a warm summers day. It’s bliss encapsulated, and the band deserve a great amount of credit, not just for shifting their style, but shifting it and pulling it off marvellously. The record is a treat, crawling from start to finish but doing so with a melancholic grace, and listening to it makes me infinitely happy and strangely reflective. It’s a release which sets me at ease, and that’s a great quality to have a music; Reverie Lagoon leaves me unburdened, and it does so in nothing but a positive way.

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