Wolf Alice - "The Clearing" (2025)

Wolf Alice are a special band to me, with each of their records soundtracking my life over the past ten years - from teenager to student to adult. Visions Of A Life and Blue Weekend in particular are records that have never really left my rotation, and I probably listen to them a dozen or so times a year each. The Clearing comes just over four years after Blue Weekend, making it the longest wait between albums yet (VOAL and BW had just under four years between them), and it was clear (pun intended) from the first rumblings from the group that this was going to be a big departure from their previous three albums. Ditching their previous indie label Dirty Hit for the massive major label, Columbia; and enlisting pop super-producer Greg Kurstin - it is clear that the band are making a big swing at cracking the mainstream. (Despite their critical acclaim and the indie cult classic status of Don't Delete The Kisses, they've never had a top 40 single).

The first taste of this new era we heard was the bombastic lead single, Bloom Baby Bloom. The song is showy dramatic piece of piano-led glam rock, with Ellie Rowsell's soaring vocals gliding above a rollicking piano riff and snappy percussion. So it was pretty evident that the rest of the record would be leaning into the 70's rock revival that the indie scene has been obsessed with over the past year or so. As much as a like the song, I was a little worried for the album as a whole; as I'm not the biggest fan of Kurstin's production in general (particularly when it comes to more indie leaning acts) and Bloom Baby Bloom, while it does sound great, it is rather clean and shiny for a band known for their noisy, layered songs and fuzzed out guitars.

I'm glad to say that Kurstin hasn't butchered the production here (the opener, Thorns, is the only real offender of the dreaded 'pop producer throws in everything and the kitchen sink' cliché with it's unearned swells of strings, and excessive multitracked and tremolo effected vocals), but he doesn't really excel at it either. The record on the whole sounds way too clean and sterile, lacking the organic warmth and intimacy of the sounds and styles it is calling back to. It feels like the big budget, Hollywood, focus-tested version of a 70's throwback record - which is essentially what it is. I think the problem with this is that the songwriting is also a bit hit and miss (which is quite unexpected for Wolf Alice), meaning that the weaker songs here just breeze by without any interesting production to draw attention to them.

Where the record really excels is in its singles. Just Two Girls follows Bloom Baby Bloom in the tracklist and is one of the most lyrically detailed songs on the record. The song is a heartfelt ode to female friendship (completing a trilogy of songs including Bros and Beautifully Unconventional). It's lyrically dense and witty, yet subtly catchy with groovy piano riff and little variations on the vocal melody throughout the song. The album then closes out with the other two singles, White Horses and The Sofa. White Horses is a driving, jangly, somewhat folky indie rock tune that builds up in layers to a cacophony of sound. It is probably the closest to the band's typical walls of sound that The Clearing gets and is appreciated after and album that is generally pretty mellow throughout. The Sofa, on the other hand, is a rich, cinematic, string-laden ballad to close out the record and its themes. Ellie soulfully croons about finding peace in herself and accepting the duality of wanting to be the dramatic, sexy rock frontwoman that she has often portrayed herself as in the band's previous output; and to be the chill, laid-back 'clean girl' who just wants to 'lay on the sofa' and take life at a slower pace. All three of these songs are excellent and stand up with the rest of the band's catalogue.

Unfortunately The Clearing starts to falter in the deep cuts, that are all concentrated in the middle of the record. I like the subtle jangle of Leaning Against The Wall, and it's initial tale of running into an ex long after the breakup when all the pain has subsided. But the song very quickly hits a lyrical dead end as Ellie doesn't really go much further into the encounter beyond a few cliché remarks, and the song also barely has a chorus. It definitely feels like the song needed more time in the oven. Similarly, Play It Out has some interesting ideas around aging and motherhood, but is wrapped up in a slow piano ballad where the instrumental is frankly quite plain and boring. Passenger Seat is a pretty perfunctory soft rock tune. It's perfectly fine while it's on, but there are a thousand songs that sound exactly like it and explore similar themes of escape and 'running away with the person you love'. I have similar feelings about Safe In the World, which for me is the most unremarkable song in the tracklist. Bread Butter Tea Sugar is another song that has elements I really like (the more dramatic, glam rock aesthetic and more commanding vocals from Ellie), but once again feels kind of kneecapped by the production. The groove feels very stiff and rigid, and lacks the swagger and arrogance that this kind of glam rock song needs. The only deep cut that I think hits the mark in all elements is the dreamy, layered up chamber folk track, Midnight Song. It's the kind of song that the band has pulled off before so it is right in their wheelhouse. It is also one of the few moments where the warmth and texture of the record shines through the production; and Ellie's vocals remind me of the likes of Nico, adding to the throwback vibe.

There is some great stuff on The Clearing, and some tunes that are going to be Wolf Alice Staples in years to come. But it is weirdly inconsistent for a band that has never been inconsistent, even back to their earliest EPs. That combined with just the wrong choice in producer, results in an album that while has its moments, doesn't come together to anything particularly impactful. I don't see myself in a couple of years regularly putting this on like I do with the rest of the discography, and I'll probably only listen to it in future when I'm just having a Wolf Alice binge and listening through the whole discography. It's a bit of a shame, but I think it's just a misfire and the band will probably go and do something completely different again for album 5.

Top Tracks: Bloom Baby Bloom, Just Two Girls, Midnight Song, White Horses, The Sofa

6/10

Lorde - "Virgin" (2025)

Lorde's first two records really set the stage for the alt pop explosion of the late 2010s and early 2020s, with their stark and nocturnal synth pop instrumentation and Lorde's very raw and introspective lyrical content. While I personally am fairly ambivalent on the debut, I think Melodrama is a fantastic record that has really aged well. Lorde decided then to completely pivot her sound on 2021's Solar Power, to this throwback early 00s 'beachy' folk pop style with a hint of 90's alt dance / Madchester influence thrown in as well. I get what the record was trying to do, essentially being the antidote to Melodrama. Melodrama was, as the name suggests, about the Melodrama of experiencing your late teenage years and early twenties while being thrust into the limelight; whereas Solar Power was all about healing from that. However, it didn't sound summery and 'beachy' and relaxing; it sounded washed out, drab and lifeless. I hadn't re-listened to it since its release until I was going through Lorde's entire discography when Virgin was released a couple of month back; and I found it just as boring and aimless as I did in 2021.

The record was critically panned and didn't really connect with the fanbase as well, which left me wondering where Lorde would go next. Four years later, the release of Virgin's lead single What Was That gave us an answer. She's playing it safe and going back to the sounds and ideas that everyone loved on Melodrama. I'm being flippant saying What Was That is just Melodrama again, as it's more like Melodrama but more. The synths and grizzled and blaring, and the lyrics (once again revolving around that early 20s party lifestyle) are more blatant and explicit. It's not a particularly bad song, but as Lorde's big comeback it feels particularly underwhelming.

Virgin as a whole feels like Lorde trying to make Melodrama again but at the age she is now. Musically, some tracks follow on from What Was That, being a slightly edgier and more experimental interpretation of the alt pop style she perfected on Melodrama. Whereas others go for a more reserved and 'mature' take on that sound. Lyrically, she is framing the chaos and internal turbulence that characterises her 2010s work through the lens of things that you only really start thinking about as you approach your mid-to-late twenties. On the record, Lorde explores her gender identity, her relationship with her parents and the power dynamics within previous relationships - topics that don't get more than a passing thought in a nightclub at 19.

The other two singles fair a little better than What Was That. Man Of The Year is a slow-burning ballad that slowly fills out with clattering percussion that by the end of the track completely overwhelms the mix. The lyrics detailing how Lorde feels like she just doesn't fit into gender norms are also more engaging than the rehashed hot-mess party girl themes of What Was That. The opener, Hammer, also explores these themes and is definitely my favourite on the record. The warbling electronics and rising synth lines all build to a climax that recalls the cathartic release that Lorde does so well on songs like Green Light and Ribs. Favourite Daughter is also an album highlight for me, with a danceable groove and a memorable hook. Again it explores an interesting topic, as Lorde delves into her relationship with her mother and her desire to please her and how she never felt good enough.

Unfortunately, as the middle of the album approaches, it kind of just drops off the map. The tracks meander about with little in the way of a memorable hook or interesting instrumental. The synths feel very muted and turned down, and Lorde really struggles to command much presence with her vocals. The whole stretch of the record from Current Affairs to GRWM feels so drab and greyscale. The record does pick up a bit towards the end, with some more uptempo tunes that have a bit more of a danceable beat. You definitely can hear the influence of BRAT on these songs (Lorde has been pretty vocal about how working with Charli XCX on the Girl, So Confusing remix helped her escape from a years long creative flunk). However, these songs are still dressed up in the very moody and muted pallet of the rest of the record, so go nowhere near as hard and are not as nearly impactful as I would like them to be.

The album does close on a high point, the very raw and uncompromising Ballad, David. The song is framed as a takedown of a previous lover who abused a position of power; however has a subtext that this 'lover' is not necessarily a person, but a reflection of Lorde's relationship with herself, the industry and her fans. Lorde's vocals take centre stage, and the washed out, muted synths take a backseat which makes it one of the most impactful songs on the record.

Virgin has some interesting ideas, but they don't really come together into a cohesive whole. And coupled with some weak hooks and a drab and lifeless instrumental palette, it makes it a bit of a slog of a listen. It's definitely better than Solar Power, but I think its rather forgettable when put next to her first two albums or the slew of great girl-pop we've had over the past couple of years.

Top Tracks: Hammer, Favourite Daughter, David

5/10