Album Review: alt-J - The Dream

Since their 2017 album RELAXER, alt-J has been one of my favourite bands. As the title implies, their fourth album is an entrancing journey from start to finish. With lead singer Joe Newman’s distinct vocals and plenty of perplexing lyrics, this is alt-J at their best. It is relaxed, imaginative and, most importantly, feels authentic. A large problem that critics had with their last album was that it did not feel personal; The Dream blends the fictional with the real, making it 50 minutes of unadulterated bliss.

The track encapsulates alt-J’s ability to push music conventions

From the first track ‘Bane,’ I was instantly hooked. The track encapsulates alt-J’s ability to push music conventions, but retains their brand. The sound of the opening and drinking of a fizzy drink’s can, along with the remark ‘cold and sizzling’ mirrors the unleashing the music and letting yourself experience joy, like the simple pleasure of drinking Coca Cola. The ‘ahhh’ after the gulp evokes the relaxing tone of the album as the strumming of guitar drones in. Quite suddenly, ‘I sold my soul’ booms in, changing to an ominous and cult-like sound. The beauty of the track is that it is like the hills and valleys of an uncharted territory. Joe’s soft vocals croning at one point, a soothing flute melody at another, and a children’s choir towards the end adds a profound aura. For a song that is simply about being addicted to Coca Cola, it is a complex mismatch of everything ‘alt-J.’ It is a new journey upon each listen and is even more addictive than Coca Cola.

The second track, although far more simpler structurally, is just as dreamy. The slow tempo beat of ‘U&ME’ matches the laid back lyrics such as ‘summer holiday, having fun / happiness is between two buns.’ It is the catchiest song on the album and will definitely be a song I play throughout summer. Moving on to the third track, ‘Hard Drive Gold,’ is one of my favourites from the album. The story of this track, a teenager becoming a billionaire through cryptomining, lends itself to the fantasy motif of the album. Yet the delivery of the vocals is effortlessly cool, making it believable. I particularly love the embellishments on the track: the feature of Joe’s mum saying ‘hot’ and Gus’ mum saying ‘scum’ makes it a very humorous track. The chanting of ‘don’t be afraid to make, to make money, boy’ in the pre-choruses adds a convincing kick to the track.

It is the most depressing, yet beautiful track on the album

Another standout from the album, ‘Happier When You’re Gone’ is melancholic in both the lyrics and the vocals, changing to a darker tone than the previous tracks. This is highlighted in the paradox ‘It’s not easy / homelessness at home.’ This track directly contrasts ‘Get Better,’ both are lamentable tracks about domestic life, but the narrator is fearful of her lover in ‘Happier When You’re Gone’ opposed to the narrator in ‘Get Better’ mourning his lover’s death. It is the most depressing, yet beautiful track on the album. The stripped-back acoustics draw focus to the bittersweet lyrics and vocals.

If ‘U&ME’ and ‘Hard Drive Gold’ represent the dream side of the album, then ‘Chicago’ and ‘Philadelphia’ embody the nightmare. ‘Chicago’ starts with the rumble of a storm and soft vocals – nothing out of the ordinary for alt-J. Then the sudden silence for a few beats and the gradual and lengthy incrementum of a foot pedal drum and guitar riff adds a sinister atmosphere to the track. The false start lures the listener into a false sense of security before the real horror of the track unfolds. With eerie, hardly audible vocals and strongly proclaimed lyrics like ‘an apparition lifts me up,’ the track is an aural rendition of a hellscape. Like ‘Bane,’ this track is evidence of alt-J experimenting with different components in a single track. ‘Philadelphia’ keeps this haunting beauty alive with operatic bursts of the titular lyric ‘Philadelphia’ at junctures throughout the track, adding a vintage vibe. This parallels the cinematic quality of the chorus with the lyrics ‘In the dying of the light / My aggressor runs under the lamps.’ There is drama and an ominous build up to orchestral strings in the next verse, creating a bold image of the crime. The outro is gorgeously enchanting: the lyrics ‘‘awake’ and ‘not awake’’ truly summarise that the album is set in the twilight of reality and illusion.

Ultimately, the album’s blend of the highs of life, the lows of reality and the mystery of the imagined to the backdrop of lullaby-like and nightmarish melodies is why it is such a strong album. There is an intangible quality to all the tracks, yet they’re so full of vitality. Definitely listen to the elusive siren that is The Dream.