I promise that this is not a Wolf Alice fan blog, but you would be forgiven for thinking otherwise. It has been less than 24 hours since the release of the band’s fourth studio album, The Clearing and unsurprisingly, I have lost count of how many times I have listened to it already. I suppose today’s moment of gratitude would find me being thankful for working from home on this momentous day.

I had initially planned to listen to The Clearing at midnight, having got sucked into a whirlwind of excitement around its release. While I did not win tickets to their Dublin Castle gig, I did watch the livestream, and it was just the perfect little appetiser. That being said I ended up getting some much-needed sleep before midnight struck so had to wait until the morning instead. So, I woke up, reached for my headphones and plugged in.

I will be honest, on first listen I was not immediately hooked by the whole thing. Don’t get me wrong, several listens later I am fully in love with it, but I do think it is worth going over some of those first impressions. If you are after the raucous energy of Yuk Foo and grit of Formidable Cool, this might not be quite what you are looking for. If you have not listened to it yet, I would say put any expectations to the side and let The Clearing take you on its soft yet enthralling journey. For a second I did find the 70s grooves a little gimmicky, but by my second or third listen I was really leaning into it and enjoying everything else it had to offer.

track by track

Thorns

I had heard a few live renditions of this which I think is where this track really blossoms, but that is not to say the recording lets it down. I think it is ideally placed at the start of the album, singing about “making a song and dance about it”, only to then go deliver a whole album on it – perfection.

Bloom Baby Bloom

I can totally see why this was their first single. It goes off in all directions, fury and beauty all in one. It left us guessing what was to come in the most spectacular way and it remains one of my favourites on the album. I love the vocals and drums and find that this one is probably as close as it gets to that Wolf Alice sound as we knew it before.

Just Two Girls

Now this one I cannot get out of my head. It is just so damn fun, peak girlhood. If Bros is about the friend you grew up with, Just Two Girls is the one you met out in the club. For some reason I picture the other girl as Janet from Confidence Man, that may be to do with the Instagram reel they shared with Ellie wearing long brown extensions and the resemblance was uncanny. It might not be my favourite overall but it is a little earworm that I can’t help but bop to.

Leaning Against The Wall

The country tinge to this makes me think of the band’s very early folk days, back when Joff and Ellie started out as a duo. This song didn’t hit for me until Ellie sings “you put my world in slo-mo” and “you put my name up in lights” – something about the shift in tone there really struck me. It is at this point of the album I realise just how much weight Ellie’s vocals are pulling in this album. Am I missing a little of that hard guitar? Sure, but I am so here for everything else in between. Still, I’m not entirely convinced about the end of the track and have already found myself skipping on to the next one.

Passenger Seat

Okay I do think this one is a little middle of the road. I like it as a sweet little love song but one of the most memorable tracks, it is not. I totally relate to its message of being a passenger princess both literally and in a metaphoric way, I enjoy it, but for now that is just about as far as it goes.

Play It Out

This! This track is an absolute beauty. As a single, childless woman in her early 30s I totally connect to this track’s themes of societal norms and pressures to start a family and so forth. This is one that struck me immediately, although it did not make me cry until perhaps my third or fourth listen. The lyrics “I wanna age with excitement / Feel my world expand / Go grey and feel delighted / Don’t just look sexy on a man” – are probably my highlight of the song and maybe even the album, but what really gets me in the gut is “In sickness and good health / I promise to love and cherish myself”. It almost feels like a love song to yourself, focusing on aging gracefully in your own way. I have never appreciated Ellie’s piano work more, a lullaby sound to cradle the heartwrenching feeling.

Bread Butter Tea Sugar

In swoops this absolute bop to lift the mood. It has such a feel-good energy that I think is very much needed for the emotional wreck that Play It Out turned me in to. The lyrics made me think of a situationship, particularly with lyrics like “I know you’re no good / But you’re my wicked pleasure / Feeding me charm / In miniature measures”. I love the beat, the energy and the general notion of just liking something that is a little bad for you, whether it be the sugar in your tea, butter on your bread, or that person who you just can’t shake. I absolutely adore this one, puts such a smile on my face.

Safe In The World

The energy winds down again and similar to my feelings on Passenger Seat, it is a decent song, but I am not overly fussed about it. A lovely message and warm fuzzy feeling sure, but at this point I am itching to get to other tracks on the album.

Midnight Song

It’s giving folklore. This feels like it belongs in a fairytale with the vocals at the forefront of this ethereal little number.

White Horses

Having listened to the rest of the album, this is absolutely one of my favourites. I love that we get another hit of Joel on the vocals and really enjoy how him and Ellie share this one. I get such a rush when Joel sings “I choose you yeah I choose you” on the second rendition of the opening verse. They sing about choosing family and that is exactly what Wolf Alice feel like at this point.

The Sofa

I loved this as a single and I love it in the context of The Clearing even more. It feels like the more whimsical partner to Play It Out, similar themes of living life the way you want, but perhaps a little more day by day than as a whole. This might be my favourite of the whole lot, and I could not think of a better way to end the album as it soars into great heights towards the close.

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As much as some of the tracks mean more to me than others, I can’t deny that this album is a piece of art. I would say it is not what I expected, but the reality is I don’t really know what my expectations were. Wolf Alice have always been an evolving band who continue to explore different avenues. The Clearing feels like a whole new world which I think I will settle in to just fine.