Wolf Alice – Visions Of A Life (Dirty Hit Records

Genre – alt rock

Wolf Alice have become the most sensationalised band in Britain over the last couple of years. The endless hype, endless airplay and continual exposure has ensured that Vision Of A Life was one of the most eagerly anticipated albums of 2017.

But, is it any good? And, do Wolf Alice deserve the hype?

The short answer is yes. Wolf Alice are that good, and they do deserve they hype. But, they also require you to put the time in.

Visions of A Life is a beautifully bold, forward thinking alt rock album that is bursting with raw, rugged rock sounds that compliment Ellie Roswell’s vocal masterclass. Roswell’s vocals are central to everything Wolf Alice do, and that’s clear from the hazey start of the dark, dense opening track Heavenward.

Although not your conventional rock singer, Roswell is a chameleon, changing her vocal identity in each track. From screaming, screeching punk vocals in Yuk Foo to du wop singing in Beautifully Underground, to the effortless harmonies of Don’t Delete The Kisses, Roswell has it all. And, she’s got a band around her with enough talent and creative flair to allow her to show her dexterity.

The harmonised vocal approach taken by Wolf Alice is one that alt rock fans will not be overly accustomed to, and is one of the reasons that this album takes a number of listens to really get your teeth into. This is particularly poignant with After Zero Hour. This slow, high pitched vocal track is laced thick with harmonies, so much so that is veers much closer to pop than rock.

But, then there’s the flip side with the album’s title track Vision Of A Life. This near eight minute track is filled with classic rock sounds, shredding riffs, venomous hooks and rock vocals galore. For rockers, this track may well be regarded as the best on the album. For pop and indie fans, it will likely be too long, but it perfectly sums up the variation on show from Wolf Alice.

Vision Of A Life is full of flair, experiment, distortion and youthful exuberance, and it’s a breath of fresh air on our airwaves. Overall, the Wolf Alice sound is not completely original. It’s more of an amalgamation of post rock, punk, alt rock and shoe gazing, but they’ve managed to blend it into a commercially viable package, which is what makes them so striking in their approach.

RUSHONROCK RATED – 8.5/10 Proving to be worth the hype….

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