Interesting, unpredictable second Wolf Alice album switches from shoegaze sounds to angsty garage rock [Review]
Following their highly successful debut My Love Is Cool, British four-piece Wolf Alice have started to get more playful and explorative on their second full-length album Visions Of A Life.
The record seems to switch between shoegazey, reverb-heavy washes of sound, such as opener Heavenward and Sky Musings, and more angsty ’90s garage rock. Yuk Foo is indicative of the latter – full of aggression, brash guitar feedback and shouted vocals. But it feels worlds away from songs like Don’t Delete The Kisses, St Purple & Green or Sadboy, which have as much power as any punk track, paired with the kind of dreamy sonic escapism of My Bloody Valentine or Slowdive. Space & Time, meanwhile, channels the simplistic nature of The Vaccines, and is full of energy.
Overseas tours have been eye-opening for dream-pop songwriter Amelia Murray
Planet Hunter has a much drier vocal delivery, and channels a slightly cleaner Feeder sound, while Formidable Cool has the character of The Stone Roses, as Ellie Rowsell undulates between whispers and shouts throughout the track.
Wolf Alice even delve into some gloomier acoustic moments. After The Zero Hour is far more folk-tinged than anything else on the album, placing blissful melodies over gentle finger-picking and faux strings. The monolithic title-track closer moves from a hypnotic haze into intensifying drums and low, dark post-rock riffs, constantly keeping listeners on their toes.
Visions Of A Life is full of interesting and unpredictable songs. However, these ideas can be so opposing that Wolf Alice have ended up creating something without a clear vision.
Edited by Pete Spurrier