Since forming in Maghull, Liverpool in 1978, the New Wave veterans have had their fair share of ups and downs, including the death of their drummer Pete de Freitas in 1988. They are now reduced to just two members of their original line up: lead singer Ian McCulloch and guitarist Will Sergeant. The eponymous opening track of Meteorites atmospherically opens with the line “Hope, where is the hope in me?”.
Reflection and melancholy appears to be the premise to the album, as demonstrated by its opening song, but the band’s characteristic brand of new wave rock and neo-psychadellica (epitomised in their 1984 hit “The Killing Moon”) is also evident. “Constantinople” avoids what could have been a patronising, cliched guitar riff with eastern influences by adopting the characteristic heavy feedback and trance-like reverb. “It’s so Cold in Constantinople” – a theme seems to be forming here, and is perhaps a little to intense for what should, in some ways, a more enthusiastic return to the studio for the first time since 2009.
Fortunately, the run of self pity is brought to an end with “This Is A Breakdown” where a key change and the repeated lyrics “I don’t think so” ensure that the the rest of the album takes a more positive direction. “Holy Moses”, a track basking in anthemic glory, introduces a more biblical theme which is developed more closely by “Grapes Upon The Vine”: “The devil in you, The devil’s in you” is bittersweetly juxtaposed with upbeat strings. Things take a dramatic turn with “Lovers on the Run” and its acoustic melodies treading the boundary between hope and regret, while “Burn It Down” and “Explosions” have the air of being straight out of the britpop era. The crooning “No survivors will be found” in “Market Town” instead employs lyrics to convey the same characteristically melancholic themes with relative simplicity. The closing track, “New Horizons” goes full circle and is more slow and reflective while sounding altogether more hopeful.
The layered vocals consisting of a low growl and higher pitches along with more upbeat orchestral tones present an ethereal darker presence below the surface of the songs. And this makes it all the more profound.
