French Wives – Dreams of the Inbetween

Glasgow five-piece French Wives describe Dreams of the Inbetween as “finally sounding how we always wanted to sound.” It’s how we want them to sound too: big and bold one minute, quietly coaxing you closer the next. They’ve taken their time getting to this point, but the patience has paid off, their increased confidence most apparent on the two re-recordings to make the album: Halloween cuts to the chase quicker, and consequently brings a greater impact; while Me Vs. Me slows a beat, slices off the ending, and surrenders its choppiness to unlock the song’s previously-compromised potential.

Throughout, tracks mesh satisfyingly, with motifs weaving through the record: The Inbetween, for instance, picks up on the melodies of preceding track Back Breaker while simultaneously foreshadowing Younger’s refrain, creating a rewarding sense of cohesion. Elsewhere in the same song, Stuart Dougan sings “it’s not a masterpiece / you will discover this.” Perhaps not, but it’ll do nicely.