Slowdive - Everything is Alive

Coming off the back of a decorated festival circuit playing the likes of Glastonbury, Primavera and Green Man, and a fast approaching UK tour to boot, Slowdive make their long awaited return with new studio release Everything is Alive. Luke Bower shares his thoughts.

It’s no secret that the UK shoegaze outfit’s reputation proceeds them, with their self-titled 2017 release being met with resounding critical acclaim that saw them retain their hailed status as quintessential pioneers of the genre. It almost seemed an impossible feat to even come close to the highs of their praised back catalogue, yet Everything is Alive blows these expectations out of the water. Introspective, cathartic lyricism accompanies intoxicating guitar reverb across the record’s runtime, encapsulating its listener in fully realised lyrical and sonic catharsis that the group effortlessly delivers.

Shanty opens the record with their signature walls of luscious instrumentation and melodic simplicity that never overstays its welcome, engulfing you immediately in enthralling soundscapes that wouldn’t feel out of place on cult classic Souvlaki. The intoxicating bass lead and stripped back percussion of prayer remembered that follows offers a barren and dreamy landscape from the band, with the instrumental being placed at the forefront of the album’s track-list to even further inebriate its listener early on and set the tone for the rest of the record’s melancholia. Andalucia plays is drenched in waves of nostalgia and retrospection by Neil Halstead’s murmur-like vocal delivery, dealing with themes of reminiscence in its lyrics, and solidifying the record’s youthful atmosphere.

These tracks offer a distinctive landmark in the shoegaze titan’s five album run where their signature sound is recontextualised for shoegaze’s new age; tracks that will no doubt be hailed as setlist highlights in years to follow.

It is in its back half however where the record truly solidifies its essentiality in the band’s discography. Lead single kisses boasts dream-like vocal refrains and a catchiness not too dissimilar to fan favourite Allison, with sharper production than the 1994 career defining track, that never takes away from its haunting lyrics of dreaming and escapism. Sound engineer Shawn Everett’s influence on the record here shines, underpinning the track in sonic clarity. Chained to a cloud's hypnotic synth lead dominates its runtime, perhaps giving the listener a glimpse of the album’s original intention of electronic experimentation as described by Halstead. Album highlight the slab sees Slowdive grapple with a sonic density and urgency that serves as an incredible album closer; a tourniquet of air tight instrumentation and haunting guitar leads that permeate the track bring the record to its fitting, climactic end.

Everything is Alive presents Slowdive at their best: a second comeback album that feels utterly earnest at this point in their career. It’s a record that succeeds in straying away from capitalising on the nostalgia and genre defining prowess of their previous work, and one that instead finds a perfect balance between welcoming familiarity in genre convention and nuanced experimentation that further drives the band forward and allows them to continue to perfect their distinctive sound.

Luke Bower

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Edited by Natalie Howarth

Image: Everything is Alive Official Album Cover, Dead Oceans