I was about to say here we go again but that would sound somewhat disingenuous. It’s more a case of if you wait long enough, it all happens again. And so in an earnest mix and match from the past scenario, The Great Nostalgic take some nineties rock American style and add some proto Bowie stylings with the result being their album “Hope we Live Like We Promised”.
So you get these big songs – all assembled with greater than average care – that make you want to rummage through your record collection (probably caused by the riff on “The Great Unknown”…) just to check if this band are part of a reformation. That said, there is much to enjoy here. The aforementioned care and attention ensures that there is always something to tantalise your ears with the arrangement on “Morning Light” standing out as an effective example of this band’s reverential style and their ability to create atmosphere.
Variety seems key to The Great Nostalgic as, just when you might dismiss them as another hybrid of things past but not forgotten, they throw in something altogether more theatrical like “Neighboorhoodlums” and lift themselves up to a new level.
So, there is much to like here and I can see The Great Nostalgic’s retro but not quite style making them some new friends.