I have been waiting on this album for what feels like absolute centuries! I first saw Wolf Alice when they supported the 1975 on a few Irish dates in February 2014 and I immediately fell in love. I'm not usually a massive fan of anything that's in anyway related to grunge but I found myself immediately drawn in by Ellie Roswell's beautifully clear voice. The boys' breathy harmonies add to the dreamy feel of the over all vocals. I remember being a little bit entranced by their set in the Seapoint Ballroom in Galway and again the next night in the Olympia in Dublin.
When they first wandered on stage that night in Galway, I wasn't expecting much because to be honest, there wasn't a whole lot of stage presence to begin with but one or two songs in, they'd all gotten comfortable, found their own pace and had gotten the attention of every single person in the room.
I saw them again last September at Electric Picnic and they blew the roof off the tent they played, I was so impressed with their set. Whereas before they were kind of meek and unassuming, this time they had more confidence and I felt kind of proud of them!
They came straight out after the set and I was chatting to Joel and Theo for a good bit, they were absolutely lovely. They were both delighted to hear how much I enjoyed the set and I found out they're actually good mates with the 1975 so they were happy to indulge my inner fangirl and tell me all about how down to earth and sweet the boys are. Joel actually spotted my tattoo of the 1975's logo and he freaked out and dragged me over to Ellie and Theo to show them, I was a bit embarrassed but they were so impressed and happy and they kept saying how cool it was which was pretty nice.
Anyway, onto the album! I'm just going to go ahead with a track by track breakdown because that seems to be the easiest format to go about this.
The album opens with a track called Turn To Dust, which has an ever so slightly psychedelic feel to it which caught my attention straight away. Ellie's vocals are enchanting as always, definitely one of my favourite tracks on the album and a brilliant opener.
Bros is hands down my number one track though. I will never tire of this song, ever. It's rare to find songs on the theme of best friends with the whole reminiscing angle but it really works. Such an easy tune to dance to and I know I'd love to hear it on a night out or even have a bop to it the next time I'm at a pre-drinks session (prinks, if you will).
Your Loves Whore - the little pauses are just perfect and organic, sometimes I find that kind of pause can be a bit forced and can sound like the band and trying way too hard to fit into that alt bracket but it's not at all the case with this song. Ellie really shows off the different textures she can create with her voice, she's not all just sweet, clear high notes, girl's got range!
You're A Germ; first off, excellent title, feels like the height of 90's insults which I love. Quite grungy guitar and bass, it's a really great track. The group vocals with the countdown make me feel like this song will be anthemic live.
Lisbon is great, real nice blend of that grunge feel and reliable pop. Ellie's mellow vocals are quite the contrast with the thrashier more upbeat instrumental but it definitely works.
Silk feels like such a contradicting title because the song isn't quite that smooth. The only thing silky about the song is the vocals, Ellie kills it as per and the group vocals are almost choral in their depth but it's nice and it definitely works.
Freazy feels like it could be the soundtrack to my life. It's so perfectly chill and relaxed which suits me and my general laid back attitude down to the ground. I can see this being on every playlist I make for the foreseeable future.
Giant Peach has a more kind of edgy, recorded-in-someones-garden-shed kind of vibe which I love. I think this would be suited as an opening track for a setlist and I'm really hoping they play it at Longitude next month.
Swallowtail is sweet and I'm making a mental note to add this to my sleep playlist. Nice change up with the vocals, Joel sings on this one for the main part. It starts out pretty simple and acoustic and builds into a rather emotional crescendo.
Ellie's back on vocals for Soapy Water which is nice and slow, quite relaxed. The echoey percussion adds a bit of depth, as do the background harmonies. A pretty sweet little track, not one of my favourites but I do like it.
The penultimate Fluffy is another one that has the potential to be a bit of anthem, definitely gonna be a goodun' live! Arguably one of the grungiest tracks on the album, it's the exact opposite of clean cut but in a good way. This is the kind of song that they could close with because it's sure to drive any crowd totally wild.
The Wonderwhy and it's little hidden track are lovely, great way to wrap up one helluva good album. Dreamy, mellow as hell and quite smooth in it's execution. This could be the soundtrack to those days I spend wandering around green places being a fairy.
I expected big things from this album and Wolf Alice did not disappoint! Definitely gonna have this one on repeat for a bit. I'd highly recommend catching these guys (and gal) live if they're playing a gig/festival near you this summer because they won't let you down!
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