Goff's Pick of the Week- Sweet Heart Sweet Light by Spiritualized

Spiritualized have come a long way since their first album Lazor Guided Melodies, and the follow up to that album Ladies and Gentleman We are Floating in Space. And while Sweet Light Sweet Heart may not be as good as Ladies and Gentleman We are Floating in Space, few albums are, and it is without a doubt that it is their best album since then. It is a great step forward for  the band, it is like the musical scene has finally gotten to a point where it appreciates Spiritualized, acknowledges their influence, and then welcomes them into the fold as one of their own. This new album is proof that the band is skilled at looking at the musical scene, picking out the best parts of it, the parts that fit into their sound, and incorporating it into their sound to create something new that is enjoyable for traditional fans and contemporary fans alike. I like how they keep what makes Spiritualized Spiritualized, there are still the orchestral arrangements underneath all of their songs, but these arrangements never get in the way of the traditional rock chords. I find this album poppier than their previous albums, which is nice and shows that they can incorporate the changing times without really sacrificing the strong songwriting and skilled musicianship.

                In terms of the songs, Spiritualized follow the model of Ladies and Gentleman… they keep the strongest song on the album right up as the first song. Here this is Hey Jane, a song that packs a lot of punch in the great Spiritualized tradition. The song is a sprawling eight minutes in length and really rocks out. Its broken into three parts, a first part,  a sonic breakdown, and then a third part.  The song finally erupts into the albums title, Sweet Heart Sweet Light, which unfolds as being part of a poetic line. Spacman is at the height of his songwriting here, and it shows throughout.  The rest of the songs work really well too, overall the album is pretty spot on. This is an album about uncertainty, and everything about it highlights that aspect of its sound, from the songs to the album cover. And despite that uncertainty, I can say with the utmost sincerity that I like it and you probably would too.