I was first introduced to Seven Lions in late 2013 by one of my roommates after overhearing a couple tracks on a Spotify playlist of his. While I don’t necessarily enjoy dubstep most of the time (truthfully I find the monotony of buildups and bass drops to be antiquated these days), there was something different about Seven Lions. The alias of American DJ Jeff Montalvo, Seven Lions has collaborated with artists like Ellie Goulding and Tove Lo and has released four EPs, with this one, The Throes of Winter, being the fourth. An eclectic collection of orchestral dance music, The Throes of Winter makes for an interesting listen.

After a brief introductory title-track that could very well fit in a Christopher Nolan movie, we’re treated to “The End” with guest vocals from HALIENE. It feels more like a regular dance track than a dubstep track at first. The synthesizers and drum programming start out light but soon start to become a little more bass heavy. What the track lacks in originality is made up for by HALIENE’s impressive vocal work. Following track “Lose Myself” features guest vocals from PVRIS frontwoman Lynn Gunn. I was impressed with PVRIS’ debut White Noise last year so I had high hopes for this track, and most of them were met. My only complaint with this track is that at times it drags out too long but that’s probably to avoid predictability. Otherwise, Jeff and Lynn do a really good job. It almost reminds me of Zedd and Hayley Williams’ collaboration “Stay the Night”.

“December” features vocals from AFI frontman Davey Havok. It’s an atmospheric piece with your typical bass drops and distortion but its saving grace is how well Davey’s vocals blend with the track. The sporadic synth work in the chorus is also well-done. It gives the track a grandiose atmosphere. The largest problem with “December” is its near 7 minute length. At times it all becomes overbearing, but Jeff does a decent job keeping the listener entertained for that period of time. The following track, “A Way to Say Goodbye”, isn’t bad but sounds slightly out of place compared to the rest of the EP given its highly optimistic sound. Featuring guest work from Sombear, it starts out with an acoustic guitar that leads into a Avicii-like beat and hook. Again, it’s not mediocre, but its placement on this EP is slightly odd. The EP closes with another instrumental called “Cold Without You”. It almost reminds me of the snow thawing at the end of winter leading into spring, which I think was the point of this track. It’s not entirely necessary but is a nice end to this body of work.

I’m starting to realize that my dislike of dubstep spawns from how formulaic it is. Start with a dance-like beat, keep it at its tempo or slow it down, then add a well-known guest vocalist, buildups, bass drops, and synthesizers. Seven Lions tries his best to avoid the monotony and does so to a certain degree. Like most dubstep I’ve listened to, The Throes of Winter will mainly be remembered for its guest vocalists and accessibility for dancing. It’s nothing of massive critical value but it’s usually enjoyable and well worth your time if you enjoy dubstep.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZy5dQH0xZs[/youtube]

Score: 3.5/5

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