Speak Friend Channelled Sublime Spiritual Alchemy in the Sensually Experimental Gospel-Folk Single ‘An Eye Opened’ –

With Speak Friend’s latest single, An Eye Opened, sensuality, spirituality and the sublime entwine as the duo conjures the ultimate aural hat-trick.

The folkish ambient experimental work winds woodwind into an aural utopia of naturalistic motifs, where non-lexical vocals rest on a line between gospel harmonies and meditative breathwork. As glitchy trip-hop meets art pop syncopation, you’re pulled into a world where cross-continental rhythmics flow, and rap vocals cut through harmonies that bring a certain indie air of Paul Banks. Until you’re hypnotised by the track that shatters the monocultural mould, grasping the extent of the absolving magnetism is far from feasible. An Eye Opened truly feels like something that fell onto my radar from outside material reality.

The story behind Speak Friend is as deep-rooted as the track’s textures. Steph and Abe’s collaboration began quietly, with a friendship that grew through music lessons and mutual admiration before they locked themselves away in a rain-lashed Connecticut cabin. There, they let inspiration pour as relentlessly as the weather, creating songs like An Eye Opened, Planting Flowers, and Gone are the Days. The creative process reflected the state they found themselves in: awakened to nature’s intangible beauty and their own connection to it, unspooling song after song as trust and artistic faith bloomed. That raw creative energy forms the core of their debut EP, IAJAR, which stands as a prayer to the lasting power of friendship, vulnerability, and sonic invention.

An Eye Opened is now available on all major streaming platforms. Find your preferred way to listen here.
Review by Amelia Vandergast