TURNCOAT REVIEW - Wolf Alice 'Blue Weekend'

One part daydream, one part vengeful rock piece is Wolf Alice, back again with their third studio album 'Blue Weekend'. The London born quartet unveiled their eleven-track project the first week of June. It truly pairs well with the British summer weather it was born into, a whiplash of gloom and vibrance.

Wolf Alice broke seams in 2017 with the release of their second album, 'Visions Of a Life,' amassing tens of millions of plays and a Mercury Prize.

The newest venture met the standards of its precedent, bringing a freshly mature and diverse experience to the mix.

'Blue Weekend' is a perfect descriptor for the tunes. The tracklist is curated in a fashion that takes you through all five stages of grief, slaps you with hard rock bass, then turns you over to a punk girl kicker and back to grief again. Ellie Roswell's vocals are as compelling as they are poignant, with lyricism that brings the span of genres together into a powerfully dreamy feel. Half of the album could be received as an Atomic Blonde-like action soundtrack, while the other half would fit well within a fairytale.

The visuals go beyond genre with the video for 'How can I make it ok?', directed by Jordan Hemingway, coming across as comparable to an early Scorsese piece. The concept being undeniably indie, depicting a man going full force at a swanky karaoke bar.

The most memorable track on the album is 'Lipstick On the Glass,' a sharp and cutting lyrical masterpiece with slower reverb. However, it did not make the list of singles.

Though the progression is evident on 'Blue Weekend' and indeed meets the standards of their prior hits, after the initial listen it becomes evident that it lacks one aspect that Wolf Alice has previously been applauded for, fluidity. Nonetheless, the project is a refreshing score for the Alternative rock world and one of the best for 2021 thus far.

'Blue Weekend' is available now on all streaming platforms.