Alex Tearle
After Wolf Alice’s BRIT award winning album ‘Blue Weekend’, it’s great to see the band back with a stripped back, acoustic EP. The tracks sound warm and beautiful, as if recorded in the band’s bedroom, but the short selection of songs when compared to the full album makes the project feel overly melancholic and sad, without the rest of the album to keep some sense of joy. Alex Tearle reviews.
All 5 songs on this album are impeccably produced, far richer and warmer than a live lounge cover or online set. Songs like No Hard Feelings (Lullaby Version) have a particularly stunning selection of layered voices, an audible delight, feeling like the project was made for true Wolf Alice fans. Audience favourites from the band sound exceptional in this EP, particularly How Can I Make It Okay (Lullaby Version), with a stunning acoustic guitar that allows Ellie Rowsell’s vocals to shine through. This is a particularly fantastic selection of songs for these acoustic ‘lullaby’ covers, but they can feel overly melancholic.
This EP doesn’t feature any of the quick paced or more upbeat tracks
All 5 songs on the EP are incredibly melancholic, dealing with themes of breakups, intimacy and loneliness. Where in the album ‘Blue Weekend’ these songs were countered by fast paced blasts like Play The Greatest Hits, this EP doesn’t feature any of the quick paced or more upbeat tracks, making the record feel like a real tearjerker.
The feelings of sadness and anguish are particularly brought out in this EP though, following the storyline of the album (a night out gone wrong) but using stunning piano sections and vocal layering. This in turn makes lines like, “you’d like a light to shine on you” feel even more heartfelt and emotional, a real testament to how excellent Wolf Alice’s vocals are. These lines work in hushed tones and huge choruses alike on Last Man on Earth (Lullaby Version), a showcase of how sonically diverse the band are.
This project is absolutely fantastic, and I’m really pleased the band took the time to make such a beautifully produced and emotionally developed project. Though the tone of the EP is overly melancholic (and songs like Lipstick On The Glass feel a little overperformed) this project is a real success story, and an added treat for fans of the band.
Alex Tearle
Featured image courtesy of Alex Watkin. Permission to use granted to Impact. No changes were made to this image.
In-article images courtesy of @wolfaliceband via @instagram.com. No changes were made to this image.
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