THE ABSENT
YOUTUBE
ABOUT THE SONG
'Golden Test' emerged from a moment in my life when unexpected wealth revealed who truly cared about me. Each verse follows the journey of watching relationships shift and explores the universal fear that accompanies good fortune: will those around you still remain when circumstances change? The final lines reveal the song's true heart—that genuine wealth isn't found in money but in relationships that weather all seasons. Those who stay become the real "gold" worth treasuring.
NEW RELEASE!
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YOUTUBE
DISCOGRAPHY
The debut LP boldly fuses shoegaze with reggae rhythms, creating a sound that defies conventional genre boundaries. Themes of personal reinvention and spiritual growth, and lyrics about the tension between expectations and self-expression define the album.
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What Stays and Fades
The upcoming sophomore album examines how moments crystallize or dissolve and relationships transform us. The album maps emotional resilience, confronting life's breakdowns and reunions while celebrating how connections both anchor and free us.
ABOUT US
The Absent is a shoegaze fusion band pushing the boundaries of the genre. Their music is a collision of musical worlds — layered soundscapes of shoegaze, ethereal vocals of dreampop, and distinct rhythmic patterns of reggae. The US-based trio — Abbi Ingram [vocals, guitar], John Edmonds [guitar, keys], and Ian Clarke [bass, percussion] have the unusual bond of all being British expats. Together they co-mingle ethereal vocals, lush layers of guitars, and cinematic synthcraft with heavy use of reverb and delay effects. Their music is known for its dreamy, hazy, and immersive qualities, with evocative lyrics often using Jamaican Patois to explore themes of longing, nostalgia, and self-reflection.