Record Review: Ride - Interplay on vinyl record & music cassette tape

Album Review: Ride – Interplay

Few bands manage to capture the kaleidoscopic essence of shoegaze while pushing the genre forward, but Ride’s latest album, Interplay, is a testament to their enduring creativity and willingness to explore new sonic territories. Released three decades after their seminal Nowhere, Interplay is not just a nostalgic callback to their roots but a bold statement of reinvention.

The album opens with "Luminal Dreams," a track that immediately sets the tone with shimmering guitar layers and pulsating rhythms. The interplay (pun intended) between Andy Bell’s and Mark Gardener’s vocals feels effortless, their harmonies weaving through the dense instrumental textures. This is Ride at their most confident, blending ethereal melodies with a muscular, almost krautrock-inspired drive.

One of the album's standout moments is "Spectral Lines," a sprawling, six-minute epic that builds from a minimalist drum loop into a wall of sound drenched in reverb. It’s the kind of track that feels both intimate and expansive, a hallmark of Ride’s ability to evoke emotion through sound.

While the album is steeped in the atmospheric guitar work the band is known for, Interplay also ventures into uncharted territory. Tracks like "Prismatics" and "Digital Reverie" incorporate electronic elements reminiscent of Bell’s time with Oasis and his solo ventures, adding a modern edge without feeling out of place. The result is a record that balances the lushness of shoegaze with the precision of electronic production.

Lyrically, Interplay is introspective, often meditating on themes of connection, disconnection, and the passage of time. The poignant "Echoes of Tomorrow" sees Gardener reflecting on fleeting moments and missed opportunities, his voice haunting yet hopeful.

However, not every experiment lands perfectly. "Fragmented Light" leans a bit too heavily on its electronic palette, losing some of the organic warmth that defines the rest of the album. Still, even this misstep feels like a calculated risk rather than a stumble.

The album closes with "Harmonic Convergence," a slow-burning track that swells into a cathartic crescendo, leaving the listener in a reflective haze. It’s a fitting end to an album that thrives on contrasts—light and dark, chaos and clarity, nostalgia and innovation.

Interplay is a triumphant return for Ride, a band that proves they’re not content to rest on their laurels. By blending their iconic sound with forward-thinking experimentation, they’ve crafted an album that feels both timeless and refreshingly contemporary. For longtime fans and newcomers alike, Interplay is a journey worth taking.

Rating: 8.5/10

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