Following on from their Mercury Prize nominated debut brimming with indie hits, and their equally alluring sophomore album in 2020, The Big Moon yet again prove why they’re an underappreciated gem with their third effort Here Is Everything.
Their notoriously tender harmonies and strikingly open lyrics remain, but this time there is a maturity, grounded in tales from frontwoman Juliette Jackson’s experiences of pregnancy. Listeners are embraced, irresistibly taken on a journey arm-in-arm through her fluctuating emotions.
Compared to their early LPs, Here Is Everything is more rounded. We embark on this journey with a dreamy concoction of dazzling guitars and harmonies reflecting the surrealness of Jackson discovering a positive pregnancy test in ‘2 Lines’, before a series of introspective anecdotes is concluded by a brutally honest denouement in ‘Satellites’, where despite a “drawbridge coming up on my independence”, Jackson finally admits she “could never hate” the changes in her life. Whilst listeners are navigated through her varying emotional states, Jackson’s strength and her ultimate sense of hope persists above all else.
No moment does this better than single and album highlight ‘Trouble’. After imagining the tumbling sea of ‘Ladye Bay’ in the song prior, ‘Trouble’ again takes us away from reality to a place of contemplation: “standing on a bridge I see the difference,” as Jackson paints vivid images symbolic of her transformed life. Akin to ‘2 Lines’ and the delightfully calculated and compassionate strings-infused ‘This Love’, initially you are struck with uncertainty about where ‘Trouble’ and its’ funky bassline is taking you. Soon, however, the sails are raised and the chorus erupts into unforgettable, sparkling elation, acting as an extension of their biggest and best hit ‘Your Light’ from their previous album. The Big Moon reward patience, yet simultaneously still do not struggle to produce catchy choruses. It is during these glorious moments that the London four-piece should be realised as a band deserving of grander stages.
Elsewhere, ‘Sucker Punch’ is the song most reminiscent of their 2017 debut, with its’ sprinkling of swirling Britpop strings and melodic acoustic guitars creating an ending that teases the Last Shadow Puppets and dare I say wouldn’t feel incongruous in a Bond movie. Lead single ‘Wide Eyes’ also contains a compelling pop tempo that forms the underbelly of the album and is followed by ‘Daydreaming’, which sounds exactly like you would expect, adopting the jangling pianos of 2020’s ‘Walking Like We Do’ to generate HAIM-inspired instrumentation, all whilst Jackson deliberates about her difficulties but also her pride in breastfeeding. Song-writing is certainly a comforting and empowering tool for her and although personal, the lyrics are never self-indulgent but are in fact an attractive and sympathetic feature of the album. Listeners learn to relish the ride alongside her.
This album therefore solidifies the band as a mainstay in the UK indie scene who should be getting more commercial attention. The Big Moon have always had inescapably warm harmonies and colourful instrumentation as is evident once again in Here Is Everything. But this time they marry this with a greater thematic focus of steering oneself through drastic change. Their lyrics evoke sympathy because they are so down to earth, reflecting their on-stage personalities and offstage endeavours where, for instance, they boasted on social media that chips and beans have fuelled their busy touring and recording schedule. With their largest headline show to date at the Roundhouse announced for next year, a feature included in DORK magazine, and Jools Holland inviting them on his infamous live TV show Later, will the ever-growing hype for The Big Moon see them don UK festival mainstages in 2023?
Rating: 8/10
