We all need hope – but it has to be earned. The simple saccharine promise of, ‘Everything will just be alright,’ offering no journey or effort, is tempting but hollow (and false). Instead, it’s about doing the work with the vision of the good that is to come from it that, is what truly sustains. Blind Pilot don’t shirk from the struggle, even as they can see brightness up ahead on In the Shadow of the Holy Mountain.
Because Holy is a hopeful record, starting with the explosion of hope in opener “Jacaranda”. But the sweetness is not sugary, instead a relaxed take early on that gets more active as the album proceeds. “Faces of Light” is a great call against loneliness, followed by the soaring “One Drop”. The heartbreak of penultimate “Bitter Water” is heart-worn, needing to move on. And it culminates in the earned hope of finisher “Believe Me”.
There will be a brighter tomorrow, but it doesn’t just happen on its own. But if you work at it, you will climb the Holy Mountain.
