Written by Tom Bedding
You feel like you could be like this band after you hear them interview, right? However after releasing their third album, carrying on their incredible form from'Visions of a Life', you realise that Wolf Alice are not mortals just like us. On 'Blue Weekend' the London based band stake their claim of being the best band in the world right now.
Wolf Alice’s third album begins and ends with two tracks sharing the name, ‘The Beach’, creating a full circle that truly represents life and its struggles. With this opener, Wolf Alice go for their classic immersive sound but in their most assured and maturest way yet. You can hear Ellie Roswell singing in such an honest way about feeling anxious, while making references to friendship and unsurprisingly…the beach. 'The Beach I' feels like a great title sequence to the record and flows so well into the next track, you will not get bored of going back and listening to the transition!
How wonderful is the vocal mixing and lush sounding drums at the start of ‘Delicious Things’! The delicacy of the verses is magical, with a dramatic chorus coming in like a calming wave, that instantly puts you in a place of tranquility and calm. Theo’s prominent bass line in the verses is an interesting but a nice touch, while the slide guitar fits perfectly with the classic layering up of vocals, in the songs chorus. This song is a fantastic choice to get everything going as the second track, offering the listener the misty-magical tone that Wolf Alice are known for, while adding some class and maturity to the bands already incredible sound.
Next is a song that is possibly a contender for having one of the best song names of the year, with ‘Lipstick on The Glass’. The third track starts off with an awesome sounding acoustic guitar riff, before Ellie enters the fray and sounding like that her vocals are being carried along by the whispering winds of the Wolf Alice world.
The track slowly picks up steam with its instrumentation, in typical fashion by the band, however the chorus comes in with such a hip-hop approach to it (don’t worry, they still stay true to the songs sound and overall style). ‘Lipstick in The Glass’ is for sure a standout and that rhythm section of Joel and Theo is hauntingly hypnotic in the chorus….their partnership together here is truly outstanding, you would not think it was one of the hardest songs to record for ‘Blue Weekend’.
‘Smile’ was one of the singles before the album came out and is possibly the ‘grower’ on the entire record (for me)...it’s just become better and better as time has gone on. Starting from Joel having a drum part that was a nod to Chemical Brothers, it concluded with being a song that is controlled by the bass and Ellie’s fast and almost rapping vocals, leaving us to stomp and scream all over the place. The opening feels classic and the way it all sounds so thick, ensures that the song does not feel flat at any point with its infectious, repetitive nature.
The lyrics have a massive grudge for sure, with lines such as ‘I am what I am and I’m good at it and you don’t like me, well that isn’t fucking relevant’, setting a big fat tone to this top notch single. With the drum and bass verses, the chorus does surprise you with how it soars so well and being backed up by an effective acoustic guitar, deep within the mix. Overall, ‘Smile’ is outstanding on all fronts and I am very glad it finally clicked, after missing what makes it so good for the last three weeks or so.
Folky finger playing arrives onto the scene on ‘Safe From Heartbreak (if you ever fall in love)’, containing some lovely a capella like delivery of the vocals by Ellie and the drummer Joel. The main hook of the song is fantastic, giving us the title name in such an impressive fashion, over an incredibly pristine folk style on the acoustic guitar. It is shorter than what I would have hoped for but it is undoubtedly a crucial and impressive part of the middle stage of the album.
credit: Jordan Hemingway/Press
The romantic sound of the opening synth part on ‘How Can I Make It Okay?’ graces your ears in a fashion that is mesmerising, allowing Ellie’s vocals to sound even more magical when she enters moments later. Despite the track being centred around a synth hook, the band do not sound formulaic over it and in fact, they offer us a little nod to Fleetwood Mac throughout the song. Joff's gutiar work is stuff of a true genius, he compliments the song in the best possible way and grows into the song so impressively.
So much fun is heard with ‘Play The Greatest Hits’ and it is definitely a much needed kick in the balls at this stage on ‘Blue Weekend’. Understandably, there was an assumption that the track could be a dig at being told to play certain songs/write in a certain way, however Wolf Alice are simply celebrating the experience of playing an artists greatest hits in the kitchen before a night out!
It's a punky and energetic homage to hearing your favourite songs on a night out, giving us some fine charm with its amusing backing vocals, that repeats the songs name at different points of the song. ‘Play The Greatest Hits’ finishes in incredible fashion and will for sure become a fan favourite due to its light hearted lyrics and incredibly bad arse sound.
‘Feeling Myself’ begins with a subtly played keyboard part, with Ellie’s vocals sounding very bare before a thick, ringing sound comes into force for a dreamy and atmospheric chorus. You can feel how this track really wants to explore the mellower but still rich sounding approach that Wolf Alice aimed for on their third album, giving us such soothing sounds but kicking into a an expansive chorus.
As the record enters its last part, the lead single ‘The Last Man On Earth’ walks onto the stage with incredible presence and grace, it almost feels holy for some. The piano ballad song is a wonder stroke by Wolf Alice, with its touching piano part and Ellie’s highly impressive vocal performance being a truly special moment in her career.
'Last Man…’ is simply about an arrogant man who thinks he’s the most significant person in the room, even to the extent that he feels like he was the first bloody person on the planet! Constantly we are given some amazing lines but the standout has to be, ‘Do you wait for your dancing lessons to be sent from God?’ in the first verse..its just.….wow… it truly sets the amazing benchmark for the lyrics on this impeccable song, which is reached constantly of course. There was a worry that it could have felt too performance and formulaic but Joff gives us a 70’s inspired guitar part that gives this song some interesting quirk to it, ensuring that this track has so much magic and wonder to it.
The melodic nature of the bass line on ‘No Hard Feelings’ feels amazing as the song opens, again showcasing how this band can excel from all angles. Lyrically, the track shines well with its emotive tone and includes some fantastic lines about dealing with the end of a significant relationship. ‘No Hard Feelings’ is incredibly impactful at this later end of ‘Blue Weekend’, which naturally didn’t come across when it was released prior to the album coming out.
Wolf Alice come back full circle with second ‘The Beach’ for the last track of this highly impressive LP, making it feel so complete with its beautiful journey. Many people associate the band with their loud sound but with their third album, Wolf Alice challenge that and gives us the same standard of quality and wonder as their acclaimed second record.
Most will admit that this band are the most ‘in tune’ package in music today, all members bring something so unique and special to the table…make sure you revel in it and celebrate this monumental band.
Blue Weekend- Wolf Alice: 8/10
Bring Me The Music Recommended Tracks: Delicious Things, Lipstick On the Glass, Smile, How Can I Make It Okay?, Play The Greatest Hits and The Last Man On Earth