Swervedriver, one of the bands associated with the early Eighties Shoegaze scene, always stood slightly apart. Much more obviously inspired by American iconography, culture and music than their contemporaries, they always had a driving, churning sound evoking the guzzled existence of life on the open, endless road. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas was an openly referenced template.
Now, the best part of thirty years on, they're reformed and well into their second career arc with the release of their sixth album Future Ruins. It's a record that's versed in the band's established sound, every song they've ever recorded sounds as if it would be best heard in the seat of a car on the American road. This is no different essentially from what they've done before, but appropriately it's more contemplative than their early work, reflecting both the band's advancing middle age and the changing times we live in as the fuel runs out and the world corrodes.
The record is best heard at a single sitting. Echoes of band favourites The Stooges, Neil Young & Crazy Horse and Husker Du, hum through the wires but the sound is very much the band's own by now. A certain resignation of the way the world is seeps through the bones of the album. Swervedriver have always been underrated, in many respects musically they define the adjective, but there are clear reasons for this, leader Adam Franklin's approach was always understated, to let the band's sound speak for itself. It's good to see their return has led them to play to appreciative audiences worldwide and put out records like this. All in all a fine new chapter to add to their body of work.
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