Bold and Bright
Returning to form with their fifth full length album, popular shoegaze band Slowdive delivers a smattering of sounds and atmospheres packaged in an eight-track experience entitled everything is alive. With such a definitive title, the record sets high expectations for itself, which it quickly and skillfully lives up to, with track after track brimming with vibrant colors that are inspired by a vast array of sources, from ’80s electronic music to modern alternative rock.
If you were to close your eyes and let the experience of listening to everything is alive wash over you and influence your senses, the darkness behind your closed eyelids would dissipate and give way to an array of light and color. The atmosphere that is created by much of the music throughout this record is incredibly lively, which very clearly must have been the vision in mind. Neil Halstead, one of the collective’s two guitarists and vocalists, says on the band’s Bandcamp page that “It wouldn’t feel right to make really dark record right now. The album is quite eclectic emotionally, but it does feel hopeful.” Of course this makes sense considering the trend of artists sourcing their art from recent traumas, of which we’ve certainly all endured. Guitarist and vocalist Rachel Goswell and drummer Simon Scott both suffered losses in recent years, which accounts for both the album’s dedication to their parents and potentially any melancholy moments that may exist within the album’s eight tracks. But out of darkness comes light, which this album is certainly full of.
The first 60 seconds of the first track “Shanty” serve as a fairly accurate microcosm of what the album does best as a whole. The track begins with a purely synth driven pulse that develops and shifts and morphs as the groove develops. Slowly but effectively, the more synthetic instruments take a backseat and the more traditional instruments, drums, bass and multiple guitars, are gently woven in and introduced. By the halfway mark, everything has congealed into a very cohesive and interesting sound profile that utilizes the best aspects of both kinds of instruments. Of course, Slowdive is known for excelling at creating compelling soundscapes, but the synths used this time around are floaty and uplifting, adding to the lively nature of the album. Many corners of different genres are touched upon throughout, starting in a very mellow place with the lyric-less “Prayer Remembered” which leans heavily on spacey synth pads and reverb to create a chasmic feeling. Transitioning to a very ’80s inspired drum groove and upbeat tempo, “Kisses” starts off the back half of the album. The element that works most in favor of the album’s desired sound profile is the vocals from Rachel Goswell and Neil Halstead, always very sultry and distant, working as their own instrumental textures, especially when the two vocalists sing in octaves, best demonstrated in “Skin in the Game”.
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