The Rose - 'Dawn' EP Review

In 2018, it’s rare to hear of a band that started out through busking on the streets. It’s something that attracts me to a band on a personal level. It creates a feeling that the band or artist has a genuine passion towards music and they’re willing to be authentic. They haven’t set out for the fame and success, but rather they enjoy making music and want their hobby to become their life.

A clear example of this comes with The Rose, a band that despite technically debuting in 2017, formed over the course of the previous two years. During these two years, the band (then known as Windfall) created a following through busking, writing music, and releasing covers on YouTube. It’s not your typical way of doing things, but it certainly worked, as in 2016 they found themselves in J&Star Company, and in August of 2017 debuted with their first mainstream single, "Sorry." After following up with another successful single, and subsequent eventual EP release, they became acclaimed amateurs, and have ever since been slowly finding their way in terms of their sound and style.

With sold-out European tours to Billboard recognition, The Rose certainly aren’t seen as an amateur group now, but rather four artists ready for their big break. With a growing fanbase, it’s simple to see why there was hype for this particular EP, and with 2018 being a true breakout year for the band, it certainly gave them a chance to end on a high.

The first track, titled "I Don’t Know You" has the signature flavour of The Rose, with a soft-rock tone, interchanging vocals, and an emphatic chorus. The riffs aren’t overly complex, and the drum-fills keep everything compact and tight throughout. Finishing with a guitar riff that leads into a simple drum outro is a clever way to set up the next track, and shows the carefulness of the composition.

Lead single "She’s in the Rain" shows the maturity the band now possesses. A melancholy track; with the acoustic guitar and emotional vocals worth an attentive listen. The addition of strings help add a more visceral sense of emotion, and help work the song up for the eventual addition of drums. Lyrically, it’s heart-wrenching, and with a euphoric final chorus, this song is more of an experience than your typical four-minute track. The subtle cleverness of changing "She’s in the rain" to "We’re in the rain" shouldn’t go unnoticed, serving a purpose of changing the songs message from one of sadness to hope. It’s simply an outstanding song.

From here, the EP continues in the same fashion. Third track "Take Me Down" has some stylistic experimentation and shows the power of a good chorus. Vocally it’s fantastic and the stylistic simplicity help add a tangible feeling of accessibility to the song. Meanwhile, final track "Insomnia" strips everything back and shows the vulnerability of The Rose. It’s a smart curtain closer of a song, and adds an important human element to the four tracks.

Overall, this Extended Play does a fantastic job of showing the various colours of The Rose. It evokes emotion, and is sonically faultless. I could look all the synonyms in the world up to try to be smart, but the fact is that the only word to describe this particular release is sublime. Everyone can spare the time to listen to this EP, and everyone should. If 2018 was the breakout year for The Rose, then 2019 should be the year the world takes notice.

Final Rating - 9.5/10

If you did enjoy this EP upon listening, The Rose are set to tour Europe again throughout November and December. Tickets are available now and can be found in the link below.