LONELY THE BRAVE

What We Do To Feel (Easy Life)

Following on from 2021’s The Hope List, Lonely The Brave’s What We Do To Feel is the Cambridge band’s fourth album to date and second with vocalist Jack Bennett – who also recorded and produced the album. A record of ethereal-toned synths and reverb-laden guitars, WWDTF can, at times, feel more like a soundscape layered with vocals rather than an album of meticulously crafted songs: a feather drifting on the wind, unsure where to land.

Still, if the guitars, bass and drums often lack a defining edge and statement of intent, and Bennett’s soaring, heartful vocals are often a little too buried in the mix, with each subsequent listen the whole thing just about comes together. LTB pull it off most successfully on Long Way, Colour Me Sad and Unseen, the latter taking on more bodily form and solidly planting its feet on the ground.

words OLIVER R. MOORE-HOWELLS