“After the Silence” by Revolutionary Army of the Infant Jesus

Since their re-emergence in 2015 with Beauty Will Save the World, The Revolutionary Army of the Infant Jesus have slowly but surely refined and polished their sound, moving away from the “experimental folk” of their earliest releases (1987’s The Gift of Tears and 1991’s Mirror). Indeed, the music on their most recent album, 2024’s The Dream We Carry, felt almost pop at times, albeit a very hushed and reverent form of pop.

One of The Dream We Carry’s most interesting songs was “Remnants,” which found the enigmatic music collective embracing a (dare I say it?) trip-hop sound — a sound that’s embraced even more fully on “After the Silence.” The song still has the somber mood one associates with the Army, thanks to the lovely female vocals, only with a crisp hiphop beat, some moody Rhodes piano, and wah guitar licks that wouldn’t sound out of place on Portishead’s Dummy.

Devotion to a Noble Ideal is currently available from 9x9 Records, which is also releasing Rumours of Angels, a collection of older and archival material that was previously unavailable on vinyl.