Wasteland

Description

Wasteland is a record that is unafraid to plunge into the darkness of the modern
world and embrace the weirder, edgier and more unnerving moments that come
from doing so. It is an album that captures all the enormity of life from the micro to
the macro, zooming in on the personal as well reflecting on broader societal issues.
Ghedi has always been an artist that in many ways perfectly encompasses folk music
in its purest form but he is also someone that frequently pushes the boundaries of
that label and no more so is that apparent than on this record. As like previous
albums, such as 2018’s A Hymn for Ancient Land and 2021’s In the Furrows of
Common Place, Ghedi uses traditional folk songs as a means to explore
contemporary issues via modern and experimentally-leaning music. “With the
traditional material on this album I wanted to find songs with content that resonated
with me,” says Ghedi. “But also that were based roughly around the north of
England.” This is a central underlying theme to the album for Ghedi. The feelings of
loss, erosion, and degradation are often most pronounced in working class
communities and this was something he wanted to weave in. “It was important to
voice and choose material that represented or expressed issues that correlated with
things going on around me.”
However, as remarkable as some of the traditional material is, some of the most
arresting work on the album is Ghedi’s entirely original compositions. Lead single
‘Wasteland’ is a stunning piece of work that while rooted in an environment being
corrupted and broken – “there’s violence on these hills” Ghedi sorrowfully sings,
before claiming this is no longer somewhere that can be called home – it is also a

stirringly beautiful composition that soars and glides as it opens up, as sweeping
strings swoop and in and out of Ghedi’s twangy electric guitar.
The decision to incorporate more fuller sounds, such as electric guitar and huge
drums, results in a notable shift and evolution in tone for Ghedi. “The lyrical content
needed something more band-driven and loud to deliver them,” he explains.
“Incorporating the electric guitar in my songwriting was also a big part of opening the
sound up, using drop tunings pushed me to use my voice in a wider range, which
forced me to use falsetto a lot which I haven’t previously done before. That then
opened the sound up and gave me creative ideas for bigger arrangements and to
sonically really push things.”
What Ghedi has done in creating his masterpiece is construct a remarkable space
where deeply intimate and personal feelings coexist with reflections on
environment, place and society, while also interweaving historical context via
traditional songs. Wasteland is as much of a world to explore and exist in as much as
it is an album, with Ghedi carving out his distinctly unique sonic language and voice
to explore that singular environment.