'The Eternal Hour' by Mikel Rafael - Feature Review

With The Eternal Hour, Mikel Rafael steps fully into view as a singular voice in modern folk — weaving mythology, poetry, and raw emotional texture into an EP that feels both ancient and newly unearthed. Across its three tracks, Mikel charts a single day in the life of a wandering soul, using minimalism not as constraint, but as a way to dig deeper, listen harder, and feel more.

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The EP draws from Celtic traditions and stripped-back Americana, but there’s a spectral quality that haunts the edges — harmonies that emerge like distant echoes, guitar lines that shimmer before fading into mist. Fans of Lisa Hannigan and Nick Drake will find familiar comfort here, but Mikel never leans on pastiche. His voice is patient, crystalline, sometimes barely above a whisper — a quiet force shaped by silence as much as sound.

From the literary nods in ‘A Shield and a Sword’ to the metaphysical wandering at the heart of the narrative, Mikel’s writing is steeped in image and implication. There are ghosts in these woods, but they’re internal — reflections of grief, longing, and the slow work of self-repair. Themes of loneliness and mental health thread quietly through each song, never overstated but always present.

Recorded with visual precision — each track accompanied by a haunting music video filmed in the Pacific Northwest — The Eternal Hour is as much a world as it is an EP. Mikel Rafael doesn’t just write songs; he builds spaces to feel within. For a debut, it’s staggeringly self-assured — a quiet storm with lasting resonance.