Nightwell – ‘Nightwell’ [Album Review]

Nightwell is one of the best-kept secrets in Toronto rock, and the four-piece band released its debut album, Nightwell, on April 3rd, 2020. I scanned over the press preamble about the group and saw them referenced as similar sounding to Funeral for a Friend (amongst other 2002-2008 era bands). That was all it took for me to be interested in their material. What’s even better news is that the comparison to Funeral for a Friend’s sound is a fair assessment; Nightwell vocalist Jason Emsallem can indeed emote over a microphone like FFAF vocalist Matthew Davies-Kreye.

The Nightwell album clocks in at just under 30 minutes long and features eight strong tracks that touch on an assortment of moods and tempos. The sombre song “Tonton (Flowerless)” leads nicely into the driving 2019 debut single “Drive.” “Confident” and “Ball In A Box” were both also released as teaser tracks before the entire album, and it’s easy to see why.

Nightwell is produced by the band’s guitarist, Kyle Marchant (Stick To Your Guns), and features co-production by Paul-Marc Rousseau (Silverstein) and Sam Guaiana (Like Pacific). Nightwell has put together an ambitious debut album loaded with introspection and heartbreak. The material on Nightwell touches on themes like maturity, love, grief, and brotherhood.

Like most musicians around the world caught in the thralls of COVID-19, Nightwell is a group eager to tour and bring their momentous material to audiences big and small. Watch the band’s socials for details of upcoming live shows. Most release days for musicians are a celebratory moment where their months/years of songcraft transfers ownership from artist to audience. There is usually a record release party, allowing the attendees to bask in the event with the group.

That ACTUAL “record release party moment” may be months away at this point, but that shouldn’t stop fans from getting this cool album into their ears. It’s currently streaming everywhere. If you like what you hear, drop the guys a line on their socials and tell them as much.

Nightwell Track Listing:

1. Confident 3:24
2. Runaway 3:55
3. Crash 3:21
4. Bittersweet 3:32
5. Tonton (Flowerless) 1:41
6. Drive 4:22
7. Medicate 3:42
8. Ball In A Box 2:56

Run Time: 26:53
Release Date: April 3, 2020
Record Label: Self-Released