By: Cody Englander, Contributor

[Dead Oceans, 2023]

Rating: 5/10

Key Tracks: “kisses”, “the slab”

“everything is alive” is the newest shoegaze album from legendary Berkshire outfit Slowdive. This comes just six years after their 2017 self-titled comeback. The entire album takes an interesting perspective, showing not only the band’s aging sound but their aging members. The story and place this album takes in Slowdive’s discography is, for the most part, more interesting than the actual album itself, from divorces to lifelong friendships. 

Read more: Album Review: Tyler Childers – Rustin’ In The Rain

Slowdive is a name that carries a lot of weight, mostly from their critically acclaimed first two albums, but as a collective, they’ve lost a lot of steam they once had. It’s difficult when constructing a perfect comeback after so many absent years, but 2017’s self-titled was a perfect reminder as to their iconicity, and a glimmer of what makes their sound so special. “everything is alive” lacks a lot of the introspective and classic sounds that their previous album offers. 

As important as this band was for the shoegaze genre in the 90’s, a youthful creativeness that is apparent in their earliest works is absent here. Changing up styles isn’t bad, especially as artists mature, but there isn’t much of interest or note on this new album, and certain tracks feel more frustrating than they should. The album’s coldness brings an aura of unwelcoming and unwillingness to really open itself up to the listener. 

The band is successful in a certain lonely alienation that the listener feels, but it doesn’t make for a gratifying listen with much replay value. “andalucia plays” is a good example of this, with a well done instrumental with off putting vocals that don’t do it justice. 

The album really shifts on quality too often to be a cohesive experience overall. Some songs are really great, even for the highest Slowdive standards, but others are messy, and even though they aren’t garbage, more time was almost certainly needed. The back tracks offer the most interesting and best songs, with “kisses” being the true highlight for the album, and “the slab” being a really great closer for the album. Unfortunately, the front of the album sets a very different tone quality-wise, and the musical whiplash is too much to really be considered tonaly consistent. 

This is an album that means more to the artists than to the listener, and sometimes that’s okay. An incredible emotional weight is behind the music, and are some of the most emotionally moving parts, even on the weaker songs. This isn’t a bad album, but it’s one that doesn’t hit all the bases. One that leaves a lingering emptiness to the listener for both emotional and satisfaction reasons. 

On each repeat listen, I was tempted to skip to the more enjoyable tracks, and leave the others in the dust. For diehard fans of Slowdive and the shoegaze genre, this may be a gratifying listen, but for others, sticking to the classics may be the safer choice. 

Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/album/2jSmcj39eQiU76EbMGuxS0?si=H89XEtJVSWqwGVhlC4D3rQ