Music that digs deep into the heart and soul is something I’ve been a fan of for as long as I can remember, so when I say, as a fan of said music, Rosetta West’s “Circle of Doubt”, feels like a confession somewhere around midnight in a cathedral that it is haunted. Loosely this Illinois underground blues rock trio, Joseph Demagore, Jason X, and the aforementioned Nathan Q. Scratch, have spun a track that’s got spiritual heavies but a flickering hope.
There’s hypnotic guitar riffs that pull you into a haze of weariness, and this is just a slow burning ritual that hits like that. The raw vocals of Demagore ache with the ache of a guy battling interior problems, swirling solos showing a yearning of something beyond the grapple. The rhythm section is Jason X’s brooding bass holding down the bottom, Scratch steady percussion which feels as if they are all the heartbeat in a storm. It is a blues rock with a psychedelic touch and sounds worldfolk as if it’s been around forever but is also now.
This is really an emotional truth, what gets me here. It’s a song about being stifled in a cycle of doubt after losing a soul crushing battle, something which I know only too well and my own dark nights tells me it rings true. Though it’s a spark of defiance, a refusal to give up, it bolts the track along from despair to something transcendent. The music video ramps this mood up, it’s got that gothic cemetery vibe and also some archival band footage that puts the song in a visual spell.
“Circle of Doubt” feels like a little gift from the underground. DIY ethos and fiercely independent spirit shows through in Rosetta West. It’s available to stream across all platforms, as well as on Bandcamp and is a track for people who want music with heart and tenderness, as well as grit. To me it’s the sort of song you play when you need to stare right into your shadows trying to catch a glimmer of light. Once again, Rosetta West has delivered and I was hungry for more.
.jpg)
