Everything Is Alive, the fifth album from shoegaze legends Slowdive, finds the band embracing what it is that makes them great.
Out on Dead Oceans, Everything Is Alive is a notable departure from the band’s self-titled 2017 release. Veering further into sparse, ambient sounds, it’s perhaps Slowdive’s most ethereal work yet.
From the instant opening track “shanty” begins this is an album awash with careful, delicate melodies that Rachel Goswell and Neil Halstead’s vocals can’t help but fit soothingly into. Interestingly, Slowdive follow up “shanty” with the near five-minute instrumental “prayer remembered”. A track of hope and haunt, it may as well be the soundtrack to the ending of a momentous event, such is the sense of ambiguity. “andalucia plays” threads similar feelings while “chained to a cloud” utilises arpeggiated synth beautifully.
Released singles “alfie”, “kisses”, and “skin in the game” float above the undertow and give the album a little oomph while staying true to the greater sentiment. When you reach the album’s end, “the slab” may give you a shock given the previous 35 minutes. Yet this is one of 2023’s standout songs and, as the album is dedicated to Goswell’s mother and drummer Simon Scott’s father, the lyrics “Everything is everything” and the album title feel fitting.
Everything Is Alive and Tour
You can pick up your copy of Everything Is Alive here.
Slowdive are also touring and play Dublin on November 6th, with tickets available on the band’s website. You can keep track of them over on their Instagram account, too.
G.M
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