Posted by After the conceptual and cinematic scale of Night Thoughts and The Blue Hour – Suede turned back to more raucous rock. The Britpop groups tenth record Antidepressants is their post punk record, inspired by Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure and Joy Division amongst others, following on from 2022s self declared punk effort Autofiction.
It is simultaneously classic Suede – rousing, gritty and glammed up – yet still fresh. ‘Dancing With The Europeans’ is a trademark slice of shiny britpop, a big and bolshy declaration of music’s power to connect with shimmering guitars and a soaring chorus. ‘Broken Music For Broken People’ is one of their many outsider anthems – see ‘Trash’ or ‘Outsiders’ for more info – and, despite the underlying cheesiness of the lyrics, sweeps you up in the moment with euphoric gusto. A love letter from a father to his son, ‘Sweet Kid’ is a sunny pop rocker with moreish hooks and Richard Oakes uplifting guitar work
This LP deals with depression and connection, ageing, facing up to your mortality yet still seizing the moment. The former is covered in the raucous, Siouxsie and the Banshees style title track, about depression and the over medicalisation of societies ills – replete with Brett Anderson‘s Bowie like singing meets talking. “Come down and disintegrate with me,” urges Brett in the dirty riffed opening track ‘Disintegrate’, about people revelling in their downfall together. The moody ‘The Sound and the Summer’ with Simon Gilbert‘s tribal drumbeat tell of a couple seizing the day by getting ‘reacquainted’ during a car crash – now that’s going out with bang.
After the jangly guitars and bubbling bass of ‘Trance State’, which brings to mind New Order, sombre gothic notes end this taut 40 minute record. “I close my eyes and walk into the traffic flow” sings a despairing Brett, in ‘June Rain’ – which starts off slow but builds in stature. The evocative ‘Life is Endless, Life is a Moment’, with its heavy atmosphere, floaty keys and drawn out guitars, is heavily influenced by The Cure. These two create a thick, mournful aura and balance nicely with the louder moments, but they will not be replayed often.
Antidepressant is a mighty fine album with its dark but hopeful musings complemented by its touches of Goth and Post Punk. They are not content to just rehash old glories, and thank god for that.
8.5/10
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