“English bands are so hesitant to ever admit ambition, but I am ambitious with this record,” Wolf Alice’s drummer Joel Amey said as “The Clearing” was announced – and sure enough, this was a huge step up and out for a band who were already one of British indie’s biggest. There’s something symphonic about the heft of it and not just because of the string sections, thanks to superb production by Greg Kurstin: the bass and toms are heavy yet warm, the piano pounding yet not overbearing.
Ellie Rowsell sings about suitably big themes, too, from universe-bending love on “Leaning Against the Wall “(“it really, really made the room sing, the way you said my name”), invaluable friendship on “Just Two Girls”, and “The Sofa’s” uplifting manifesto for being wild and indolent instead of toeing the line.
When critics previewed the new Wolf Alice album “The Clearing” ‘soft rock’ (whatever that means), some fans were surprised. But it contains some of their best work so far, and it also shows just how much Ellie Rowsell has grown as a singer and songwriter. Absolutely lush, ‘The Sofa’ became one of my most played tracks of the year, meditatively on boredom, life and female desire “I wanna settle down/I want to fall in love/sometimes I just want to fuck” .
Her vocal performance is exquisite, and the harmonies spiral to the heavens; the instrumentation is richly drawn, framed in airy strings, and layered with dappling pianos. There is a self-awareness sailing through these words where our dreams meet reality, where our hopes meet our fears, its both wistful and life-affirming at once. American publications may be obsessed with the latest indie rock thing in the states, Wolf Alice had just proved there was reason to look to Seven Sisters rather than LA too…
“Bloom Baby Bloom” by English alt-rock band Wolf Alice, consisting of Ellie Rowsell on lead vocals, Joff Oddie on guitar, Theo Ellis on bass and Joel Amey on drums. The song is the lead single from their fourth studio album “The Clearing”, to be released August 29th.
The Fat Angel Sings 