A near death experience was the impetus for Circa Waves’ latest studio album. Whilst the past makes us who we are and is a key influence on the storytelling of ‘Death & Love Pt. 1’, the album also sees the band considering their future and in particular the future for frontman Kieran Shudall. This record was the catharsis to take stock of his near death experience in 2023 and how he has had to adjust to a new way of life.

The process of making music is always a powerful coping mechanism when it comes to dealing with challenging and complex situations, but there’s no doubt that dealing with the feelings that led to ‘Death & Love Pt. 1’ was both terrifying and liberating in equal measure for Shudall. 

Commenting that the record was a “letter to tell myself I would stick around” frontman Kieran uses the album to reflect on the frankly terrifying experience where he thought he might die.

After the pain comes the glory, and the nine tracks that make up ‘Death & Love Pt. 1’ evoke the feeling of the privilege of youth and the euphoric nostalgia that comes with it. Whilst there’s flashes of the sound that catapulted them to fame when they released their stunning debut ten years ago, the band’s sound has matured offering a dynamic and self-assured body of work.

Despite being reflective and introspective, ‘Death & Love Pt. 1’ still manages to be explosive, euphoric and is brimming with optimism. From the offset, there’s intent and energy, album opener ‘American Dream’ is rousing, referencing the band’s Liverpool roots and talks of how the narrator takes a “flight up from Liverpool to a place that never ever sleeps…”

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Yes, New York is a place ‘where everyone is cool!’ and it’s the place where the band wanted to realise their dream, but like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz says ‘there’s no place like home’ and sometimes you have to go a long way to truly appreciate your true love of home.

The poignant yet anthemic ‘We Made It’ which sees some lovely story telling from Kieran about not only his own experience and reflections of mortality but it also reflects upon his friends personal experience with grief. It’s tinged with sadness, but it’s still hopeful.

With lines like ‘I said it took a long, long time to get here / But yeah we made it, yeah we made it’, this thought-provoking track epitomises the indomitable spirit of survival and it captures the vital optimism with heartfelt lyrics and soaring guitars.

From the shimmering ‘Le Bateau’ which was named after a Liverpool club recalls euphoric, youthful nights out is set to be a festival classic and ‘Like You Did You Before’ with its intoxicating hooks are two standouts. The former, a synth meets Springsteen is a powerhouse of a track and the latter is an instant ear worm chock-full of soaring pop sensibilities.

Emphatic to the last, throughout these tracks and most of the album, you can hear influences from indie-dance floor classics from the early noughties and before such as French indie-rockers Phoenix.

‘Hold It Steady’ showcases the album’s more emotional theme of not wanting to die and navigating his way through doubt and fear. You can really feel the emotions come through as Kieran pays tribute to his wife who was his rock during his illness. His wife is represented as the blue damselfly in the song of the same name and its delicacy and meditative approach reflects the sentiment superbly.

Both (understandably) take a slower pace, but are touching, thought provoking and shows the power of love, connection and songwriting when it comes to healing. Bold, confessional and full of vulnerability, the Liverpudlian quartet serve up poetry amidst the pain with a stellar offering of euphoric resilience.

8/10

Words: Emma Harrison // @emmahwriter

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