Beach House
7

Two introductory notes:
1) I am returning to this site after a long time. I would like to thank the friends who reminded me of this site.

2) I wrote this review for another site (I don't know if I can link it). I don't know if I can publish it: in any case, what is written is all mine, and if you find it elsewhere on the internet, it will still be signed with my name and surname.

After six albums that have inevitably consecrated Beach House as one of the most talked-about bands of the decade – whether it’s “Devotion” or “Teen Dream,” warmly received by traditional critics, or “Bloom” and “Depression Cherry,” which instead have found great success in online communities – many listeners from various backgrounds have found themselves listening to the duo from Baltimore's records, who now have to face heavy comparisons, especially with Cocteau Twins and Slowdive.

The new album, called without much fantasy “7,” is thus tasked with dissipating the most typical skepticism that can surround an album released in the 2010s by a band already active for a while (in this case for almost 15 years): it will be called to demonstrate that they have not become mere “form” but still offer “content.” This is doubly true for Beach House, champions of a Dream Pop/Shoegaze that, in recent years, has seen a succession of an impressive number of clones of questionable artistic and creative value, mainly thanks to the boom in internet distribution that has given great opportunities to emerging bands, but has also removed any filter for the quality and originality of what was published.

At the gate, the opener “Dark Spring” answers present: the guitars are there, defining an obviously “dream” but concrete atmosphere that opens in the chorus with an excellent melody at the attack of “I Want to lie in/They call Orion,” which bodes well. Elsewhere (“L’Inconnue”), the keyboards take the helm but do not fail in painting a strongly evocative scenario, permeated with sweet melodic lines. At this point, we are faced with the confirmation of the absolute value of Scally/Legrand's songwriting, which over the years has delighted with tracks like “Norway” or “Lazuli,” to cite just two examples.

The album doesn't settle for just fulfilling expectations and several times succeeds in true quality leaps. This is the case with “Dive,” an extremely powerful track that finds a great ally in the effective drumming of James Barone and the guitar mixing that brings to mind “How Soon is Now?” by the Smiths, champions of pop from whom everything originates and to whom much returns. The best track, however, is offered by the final seven minutes of “Last Ride,” which begins with an electronic stream into which an acoustic guitar and then a gently distorted electric guitar are inserted, concluding a track that deserves to be listed among shoegaze masterpieces.

In conclusion, it is true that listening to new albums from acclaimed bands risks deceiving us, hiding a creative shortage behind a bit of skill. However, while on one hand, we are called not to be deceived, on the other hand, we must also be able to recognize something truly beautiful and valuable like this 7. In my opinion, it is Beach House’s best album, and in all honesty, I would be surprised to hear a better album than this coming out in 2018.