Scottish indie rockers, The Twilight Sad, are back; and they’re back with a BANG! To say the least. With the much anticipated release of their fourth studio album Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Want To Leave.

This is definitely the comeback album that the band needed; they’ve been lacking something in their last two albums, but this one is a breath of fresh air. It shows their experimentation with so many musical dynamics – from the use of distortion/feedback to experimentation with various synthetic sounds and even the most basic, stripped down, 3 piece sound.

The recurring theme of gloom seems to cling to the band like some kind of fog. Whilst the band have clearly developed their sound, it is only really the first two tracks that stand out for me. The rest of the album seems slightly anti-climactic…

‘There’s A Girl In The Corner’ was definitely the perfect opening track for the album – it heats up quickly while remaining tense and simmering above Macfarlane’s bed of layered, distorted guitars.

But it’s the second track, the band’s latest single, that really stood out for me. ‘Last January’ is undoubtedly the strongest track on the album: the gritty post-punk alienation which hangs suspended in the ghastly vocals of lead singer, James Graham. I just love the way that the haunting echoes of the feedback infused guitar melodies circle, like a vulture, ready to feed on misery.

The closing track ‘Sometimes I Wish I Could Fall Asleep’, acts as the perfect departure from the album. The dejected, regretful, slow sounds help the album burn out; the perfect ending for a prominently dark album. The drum steadily thuds throughout, like a nervous heartbeat, In conjunction with the deep ringing of the piano chords, it’s simple, yet extremely effective.

This is, without a doubt, the band’s strongest, most demanding album to date, as it really does drag the listener in.

 

Nobody Wants To Be Here And Nobody Wants To Leave is out now.

 

Abbi Parcell

@abbilennon