Arliston is a London based two piece band composed of multi instrumentalists, Jack Ratcliffe and George Hasbury. Their work together has resulted in the release of a beautiful yet painful debut release dealing with heartbreak and the resulting confusion.

The Disappointment Machine is a thoroughly bleak album that explores the deep sadness within everyone following a breakup and its themes are portrayed in such a stark and honest way that it becomes almost unavoidable to relate to. Arliston are self proclaimed experts in sad song, taking inspiration from the likes of Bon Iver and Steven Wilson, you can particularly hear a similarity to Blackfield in its spacious production and it seems to harken back to Porcupine Tree’s Feel so Low at times.

It’s important to remember that just because something is sad it doesn’t mean that it’s completely real. People will always remember what sadness feels like and it becomes easy to replicate for the sake of relatability. Arliston do a brilliant job of imitating some of the more subtle nuances of sadness like the insurmountable weight of disappointment like in the title track and the feeling of aimlessnes on The Raft and Time Lost.

Ratcliffe’s vocals capture that emotionally exhausted feeling beautifully with seemingly no effort. It’s a gorgeous performance full of soul and the lyricism matches it brilliantly. The synths have a somber and reserved energy that matches the sorrowful vocals. The Disappointment Machine isn’t a hook filled record but there’s still a collection of majestic synth tones like the dark minimalist riffs of Sleep Well Bean.

Vertical is a more energetic track that seems to mirror trying to force yourself to retain some element of positivity despite a gigantic part of yourself being missing and a desire to wallow in your own comfortable sadness until you magically make yourself feel better somehow. Even the auto tune gives it a crutch feeling in some meta way, it’s something that’s very difficult to explain but surely someone will know the feeling.

The Disappointment Machine isn’t a Light listen, it’s a deep and heavy experience from a tone standpoint and could be considered difficult to get into for some but could be a brilliant piece of catharsis for another. It’s a harrowing and dark album that should be experienced with your full attention, regardless of if you end up connecting with it, just get some form of aftercare ready once it’s done because it’s not going to be a happy experience. The Disappointment Machine is available now and you can listen to it here.