Michelle Shiers on March 12th, 2015

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Beware Of Darkness is now a one-man show, singer-guitarist Kyle Nicolaides having parted ways with Daniel Curcio and Tony Cupito, and on the follow-up to 2013’s full-length “Orthodox,” the “Sanctuary Season” mixtape, the Santa Barbara-bred, L.A.-based guitar-slinger shelves his heavy blues in favor of some heavy soul-searching. He calls the release an “in between,” since he wasn’t yet ready to work on BoD’s sophomore album. “There were a lot of things that took the fun out of actually recording music,” he says. “It became less about crafting a song and more about appeasing people and politics and just a f*cking drag, and became more of a burden for me. … Basically, it came from a time in my life when a lot of things around me fell apart, and the only thing I could do, and the only control I had was to write, get in the studio, and work.”

The four new songs (along with two recorded voicemails) were released Feb. 11 via Bright Antenna Records. “Stranger Saved My Life” comes with a video featuring a reflective montage featuring home footage of Nicolades as a child. The song is haunting and Nicolaides voice reaches breathy highs and sandy lows as he wrestles with the theme of mortality — a consistent motif for Beware of Darkness. “Past Present Future”  begins like a fuzzed-out indie track, suitable for fans of the likes of Smashing Pumpkins, Deftones and Bush. Nicolaides voice is somewhat reminiscent of Matt Shultz of Cage the Elephant, but his razor falsetto and dark lyrics make for more sinister musical innards. In “Medusa,” Nicolaides sings bitterly and without much metaphor “I dont wanna sound mean / but I don’t care where your life goes from here.” “Beloved” starts out with simple Nirvana-esque chords and then pushes into “’60s-influenced harmony perfect for the deep orange afternoons. The guitar solos are there, but modest considering BoD’s past as a power trio.

||| Stream: “Medusa”

||| Previously: “All Who Remain,” “Howl”