Rank: 3/5
CHVRCHES’ new album, “Every Open Eye,” is a piece of hidden beauty.
At first listen, you hear the pounding bass and think this is going to be a club song, but underneath, there are intricately written lyrics full of depth.
You may remember the band’s name from its song “The Mother We Share,” which was released in 2013, and its style has not changed since then. If you enjoy the sounds of ’80s style synthesizers mixed with the emotional melodies of alternative rock, then this band is for you.
“Every Open Eye” released Sept. 25.. The normal album has a total of 11 songs, and the “Every Open Eye (Special Edition)” version has three bonus songs.
From the first song, “Never Ending Circles,” you can tell this isn’t an album about the stereotypical love scene. This album goes through all the facets of a relationship: “We are made of our smallest thoughts, we are breathing and letting go, we will take the best parts of ourselves, and make them gold.”
In the song “Make Them Gold,” the story gets to a more enjoyable theme about accepting the small things about yourself and others in a relationship.
Somehow, even with keeping almost the same basic beat in every song, you can never know what you’re going to get out of each track. The lyrics are always different and catchy without repetition. The beat is enough repetition to keep the album sounding cohesive.
The best part about this album is having the sadness of a breakup song without making you want to cry. “I never would’ve given you up, if you only hadn’t given me up,” is a lyric from “High Enough To Carry You Over.” While this song is clearly about the mistakes made in a relationship, the beat is enough to keep you up and dancing.
Nearing the end of the album, “Afterglow” is the song that stands out. The song cools down to an almost heavenly movie soundtrack type of melody. There is a huge correlation with the rhythm of the song and lyrics with the repeating line of, “I’ve given up all I can”. The subject of the song ends up being about giving up and waiting for something better.
The effort put into the album is respectable. The band made major differences from its past releases without straying from the genre its known for. The album would be perfect to listen to if you enjoy loud beats with meaningful, hidden lyrics.