Musically speaking, 2023 started off slow for me.
But, thankfully, I had Belle and Sebastian’s “Late Developers” to tide me over when it was released in early January (well, and Margo Price’s “Strays“… but hey, that’s another review!)
I like this album because I’m not a huge Belle and Sebastian fan. So listening to it was a fresh start. They’re a Glaswegian band, formed and led by Stuart Murdoch, with Sarah Martin and Stevie Jackson just behind.
This is their second album within a year, coming hot off the heels of last year’s “A Little Bit Previous,” their first in seven years. (Not quite as good, in my opinion.)
So it’s now, what, May?!
I started to listen to this in January, and it’s now May. I’m still listening to it, so my Spotify algorithms are now already decidedly shot. I’ll be listening to it all summer. This is an indie-pop gem of an album, from start to finish, with really no terrible weak spots. None. (OK, stop. It is not perfect.)
Belle and Sebastian hardcore fans may gag at the synth poppiness of “I Don’t Know What You See In Me,” and I’ve read many who think it is totally out of place on the album – but it is so catchy, and the rest of the album is as well, I think it suits it. And it is damn good.
This band displays the confidence to sing with Stevie Jackson on “So in the Moment,” a lyric: “Now we’re balancing upon the curb, please don’t say another word. Way down below, there’s still sharks in the road.
I want to jump in like Paul McCartney and Wings. ‘I feel like letting go.’ I’ll be so in the moment.“
I remember when hearing that lyric, having to go back to make sure I had listened to what I just had heard and then thought, “Yup, these guys really are my cup of tea.” Now, let’s go put the kettle on.
The first three tracks immediately hook you in, from Murdoch’s opener, “Juliet Naked,” to what should really be the next single, “Give a Little Time,” with Martin taking lead vocals and the others clapping and providing backing vocals to the lovely end. I want to make my official Teenage Fanclub comparison here, just because of this song. Thank you very much (Hey, they’re both from Glasgow.)
“When We Were Very Young” locks you in with the chorus, “I wish I could be content with the football scores, I wish I could be content with my daily chores. With my daily worship of the sublime.”
But then one of my favorite lyrics: “When we were very young, we loved our selfish fun. We cared what people thought about our selfish words.
You could not tell us then how much we wouldn’t care. ‘Bout all the mindless trivia, now we’ve got kids and dystopia.“
Hey, being young was fun. But getting old with kids and dystopia… well maybe kinda sucks.
And finally: “I wish I could walk away from my scars and sores.” Ouch.
“The Evening Star” and its horn section is fantastic, blending in so well with Murdoch’s vocals- it all sounds so effortless. I forgot this band has been doing this since 1996, and this is their 11th album.
“I Do Follow” is a lot of fun, with Murdoch and Martin trading verses, trying to figure out how much they might like (or love) each other – if it’s even possible – and then together coming to a conclusion: “I’ve got a song to sing, I’ve got pain, I’ve got sorrow. It really doesn’t matter what I say, do you follow?” I guess… not.
The penultimate track, “When The Cynics Stare Back From The Wall,” was initially written in 1995, before the release of the band’s debut album “Tigermilk.”
When you listen to the track, it is clear. I remember listening to Belle and Sebastian back then, and this brings their sound back to me.
Belle and Sebastian aren’t late developers because this album proves they are not. Listening to this, they haven’t aged. Largely, neither has their music.
And when listening to this album over and over, that’s such an oh, so, very, very good thing.
Chris Garrod, May 18th, 2023
8.5/10
