“You Are Familiar” by Secret & Whisper (update), Friday, May 20, 2022
Formed after British Colombian Nu-metal band Stutterfly's lead singer left the band, Secret & Whisper incorporated the high-registering vocals of Charles Furney (then Finn) with their speed metal guitar riffs. Furney cites The Smashing Pumpkins as one of his influences, and the band is often compared to Saosin or Circa Survive. In fact, a rumor circulated that Charles had left Secret & Whisper and joined Saosin after their lead singer Cove Reber left the group. In 2008, Secret & Whisper released their album Great White Whale on Tooth & Nail Records, touring with Emery and Maylene and the Sons of Disaster. The band's follow up album in 2010, Teenage Fantasy, was their final record, with three members starting the post-hardcore band, Shreddy Krueger.
A SILENT FIGURE, A VAPOR THAT LOOMS BEYOND. The lyrics of Great White Whale are inspired by Moby Dick combine with Furney's dreams and experiences. While tapping into the motif of loneliness in Melville's tome, Great White Whale explores the vast and mysterious world of the sea. The musical tone and lyrics paint pictures that you almost feel washed up on the shore like a nautilus's shell. In an interview with Charles Furney, he explains the meanings behind his songs. Furney talks about his Christianity and the supernatural, including his family being haunted by the ghost of his deceased brother. Both Great White Whale and Teenage Fantasy rely on the supernatural, whether ghosts, sea monsters, or Native American spirits, and deal very little with the Christian tradition. Great White Whale opens with the short atmospheric "Blonde Monster" and leads into "You Are Familiar." Both tracks were based on a recurring dream after a break up of a seven-year relationship, in which Furney meets a faceless figure. Furney's reaction to the dream was fascination rather than fear. He interpreted the dream as he hadn't met the love of his life yet and her face would eventually be filled in when he met her. To me, Great White Whale encapsulates the summer of 2008, the year I turned 21, bought my second used Toyota Corolla, went drove to Cornerstone, learned to appreciate the hilarious and misunderstood novel Moby Dick, and annoyed the passengers in my car with the screechy vocals of Charles Furney and Secret & Whisper.
BOTH OF US ARE CURIOUS. In February of this year, Secret & Whisper's Instragram account was resurrected. In the time since, the band has posted videos of rehearsing songs from their first two records. As a band with 21,000+ Spotify listeners despite only having two albums that are over ten years old, there are still fans that could make this speed metal guitar band big again. There is a theory that no bands ever really break up. In fact many of the bands that broke up due to financial hardships from the 2008 recession are getting back together. But fans have questions. Is the newly reformed Secret & Whisper only playing old music or is there a third record on the way? Will the band lean into their Christian or Shamanist roots, or both? How will their lyrical content mature? If they release music, will it be independent, through Tooth & Nail, or another label? Will they stick to their old speed metal guitar sound or incorporate new elements or will they lean into the screaming of Shreddy Krueger? I think all of the fans from the late '00s and early '10s are curious.
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