After some 22 years of waiting, hoping, waiting some more, on-going jokes and finally, resigned belief that it would never happen, My Bloody Valentine finally released their follow up to the legendary Loveless album, with the self-titled mbv. Given the immense amount of hysteria and excitement circulating the internet ahead of the album’s release on Saturday, it was never quite going to live up to the hype. It wasn’t going to be The White Album or London Calling, it was just going to be My Bloody Valentine doing their thing, which has seen them influence countless bands in the last 25 years.
The time of the release, unfortunately, happens to be in an era loaded of fuzz, droned shoegaze bands (or the awful term ‘nu-gaze’ it’s been credited with), it doesn’t feel as transcendental and bold a statement as Isn’t Anything was back in 1989. However this is 21st century MBV, and with the advancement of technology over the years, it is a very different beast to their previous two. It isn’t all just reverb and noise, Kevin Shields is keen to implement melody and make the songs memorable to the listener. The dreamy, “She Found You” lets the listener drift off on toward a spiritual journey, “Who Sees You” has a passing similarity to “Only Follow” with the alarming guitars, “Is This and Tomorrow” is an ambient slice of dream pop, “Wonder 2” and “In Another Way”, argubaly the highlight of the record, add a techno vibe and a different dimension. Whilst “Nothing Is” is a thundering instrumental club anthem.
It isn’t the jaw dropping release many critics may claim it is, but it’s still a solid listen and better than the new breed of shoegazers currently out there today. Take away the 22 year wait and it’s the perfect follow up to Loveless.
7/10
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