Review Summary: Protest dancing.
Primal Scream are one of the most chameleonic acts hailing from the UK, whose sonic trajectory over the decades has truly been a rollercoaster ride. There were various moments in their career when the thought of celebrating 40 years of existence would have merely been wishful thinking. Thankfully, they were able to overcome all that rock ‘n’ roll excess, addictions and various line-up changes, thus, crossing the respective milestone. Most importantly, the band proved several times they could change their sound and make a successful comeback when you would least expect it. Albums such as the classic
Screamadelica,
Vanishing Point,
XTRMNTR or even
More Light boast contrasting styles, yet remain just as thrilling to this day. Since 2016’s poppy
Chaosmosis, Bobby Gillespie & Co. have spent considerable time tending to their legacy by releasing a greatest hits record, touring
Screamadelica for its 30th anniversary and presenting the original tapes of their 1994 bloated, Rolling Stones pastiche,
Give Out but Don’t Give In. To be honest, I thought they lost interest in recording any new music. However, in true Primal Scream fashion, they popped out of nowhere with a brand new affair,
Come Ahead. Once more, it displays a different side of them, tackling funk, dance and soul, complete with orchestral arrangements. Despite starting as Bobby's solo material, it ended up as one of their most expansive projects so far, making good use of the extended line-up used for current live shows.
Given the fact that Gillespie has been pretty vocal about the political and social unrest in the UK and Palestine lately, you would expect to hear heavier music to match his latest set of lyrics. It was quite a surprise to hear the Madchester vibes of first single, “Love Insurrection”. One of their most immediate tunes in over a decade, it fuses slick funk leads into a smooth, Stone Roses-type beat, whereas the flute notes and mesmerizing bass grooves owe mainly to the acid house that shaped
Screamadelica. Meanwhile, “Circus of Life” takes this atmosphere into dance territory, closer to something you would hear on early ‘90s singles. This old-school feeling is present all over
Come Ahead. From here, the record splits into dancefloor ready material and meditative moments. One of the surprises is “Ready to Go Home”, turning from a capella gospel to pumping, Jamiroquai disco funk. Bobby’s voice couldn’t be further away from Jay Kay’s, however, his discreet croon does the job, augmented by sing-alongs and soulful backup singers. Moreover, “Innocent Money” and its strings-laden, soul rhythm builds up nicely with enough room for the instrumental to bloom. Spoken word lyrics are added here and there, but dancing is more fun in the end.
There are also a string of ballads here meant to balance the political content with introspective subjects. A couple of them work nice sonically in the album’s context, such as “Heal Yourself” in a George Michael kind of way, despite its rather blunt lyrics. There is also the dreamy “False Flags”, where Andrew Innes’ lovely, warm progressions make this track a highlight. Moreover, he steps in to save the cinematic closer, “Settlers Blues” with mournful guitars a la Spiritualized, as Bobby’s narration on colonialism turns monotonous during the second half. The guitarist's contributions are notable throughout the entire LP, even if they are just a few chords meant to support the main melody. Another noteworthy cut and perhaps closest to what you would expect from Primal Scream is “Love Ain’t Enough”. The pulsing rhythm features various guitar licks before being gradually swallowed by the lush orchestral arrangements.
Overall,
Come Ahead turned out one of the most encompassing affairs in the group’s discography. The attention to detail paid off and there’s enough cohesiveness too. Nevertheless, Gillespie’s redundant voice and lyrics are often too angular, but that’s the hit and miss element all Primal Scream’s full lengths share. More so here, as it should have been his first solo record. A bit more aggression would have spiced things even more, especially for the protesting mindset. While not a top-notch epic, the record successfully starts a new era for the group, albeit in quite an unusual retro fashion for them. Finally, Bobby released a big budget sounding album to match the shiny suits he wears these days.
