Spector’s still coming of age in ‘Here Come the Early Nights’

Despite its title, British indie-rock band Spector is not heading home before midnight with the release of their fifth album Here Come the Early Nights. Instead, they’re still chasing those late-night thrills – at least in regards to the beats on their new ten-track collection. Frederick Macpherson (vocals) formed Spector in 2011, the band now consisting of Jed Cullen (guitar), Nicolas Py (drums), and Danny Blandy (keyboards). Since then, the band’s debut album charted at Number 12 on the UK Top Albums Chart, they have performed several headlining tours, and they have opened for leading musicians like Florence + the Machine.

Spector is known for their classic British rock feel, with high choruses and hard-hitting bridges, and their latest release is no different. However, Here Come the Early Nights showcases more of the vulnerability that comes as a band surpasses a decade of creating music, and highlights the reflective nature of staying awake well into the darkness.

The album opens with “The Notion,” a track about trying to survive in a complicated society, where every day brings a new situation. The slow drum beat and hypnotic guitar riffs that Spector has mastered over the years shine through on the song as Macpherson questions “Lovers dying of laughter, we’re natural disasters, what happens after the afters?” The following piece, “Driving Home for Halloween,” is reminiscent of Jack Antonoff’s band Bleachers with a coming-of-age, high-energy electric guitar feel that emphasizes the nostalgia of the song.

The third track, “Some People,” opens in the same bright, rock n’ roll style as the previous two. But this time it switches to a minor tone and pace during the bridge, showcasing the quartet’s ability to mash the styles they do well with experimental journeys into darker realms. “The clocks don’t stop, the wheel turns, the night goes on, we watch it burn” echos in a psychedelic chant behind the repetition of the chorus in the outro, effectively ending the song in a manner far different than the band’s classic rock.

“Not Another Weekend,” the fifth song on the album, seems to almost chronicle the lifestyle of a “teenage dirtbag” turned “adult dirtbag.” The slow first verse bleeds into the clanging chorus, representative of the fast-paced aspect of life the track describes. “We could see our lives, flashing right before our eyes, and we wouldn’t even notice.” “Pressure,” the next track, covers the demanding expectations of society on people, and it is the most distinct piece from the album. Completely separate from the loud drums and heavy riffs, “Pressure” is steady bass through and through, with poetic lyricisms on the restraints of life.

“Another Life,” the seventh and most upbeat song in the collection, is a misleadingly bright track packed with melancholic lyrics. As the band reflects on the people they are no longer in contact with, they imagine a world where their connection never ceases. “I’m sure the four of us could be friends in another life, if we’d just met in another light, if we’d just taken another bite.”

The penultimate piece and title track “Here Come the Early Nights” drastically changes not only the pace of the album, but the focus as well. The song is just under four minutes of complete vulnerability as Spector takes a moment to acknowledge the fast pace the world around them is going, and admit that they might not be able to stay out as late as they used to: “The ghosts of long-dead summer lust, eighteen to thirty in the dust, now the song on the radio is one that we’ll never know.”  With a light, haunting beat weaving through the lyrics, the song is more than sensitive – it’s raw.

Here Come the Early Nights closes with “All of the World is Changing,” a dynamic song summarizing the key points of the whole album: time never stops, and neither should we. Even as Macpherson sings, “I had a way with words, but I lost ‘em” it is evident that the sentiment is far from true. Spector’s long career of blaring drums and rocking guitar solos is far from over, even with their new early bedtimes. For the quartet, it is rather the beginning of a new decade of creation, one where they’re already equipped with their vast skillsets and ready to explore the new, changing world.

Here Come the Early Nights is out now.