On their fifth album, Slowly Slowly farewells the melancholia of their early pop punk tracks. Forgiving Spree is a bright, nine-track epic pop-rock album designed to propel Slowly Slowly into stadiums.
This time around, they’ve received production help from Courtney Ballard (5 Seconds of Summer, State Champs) and Suzy Shinn (Panic! At the Disco, Weezer). It’s mixed by Jonathan Gilmore (The 1975). In its best moments, Forgiving Spree gestures at some of those bands’ theatricality and clean pop sound.Â
The album has a few earworm wrigglers, including the lead single ‘Gimme The Wrench’, along with ‘How Are You Mine?’ and ‘That’s That’. Overall, however, its unimaginative production blends one track into the other. Ben Stewart’s vocals are impressive, but could do with some backing vocal harmonies. The rhythm guitar is often high in the mix to illuminate a bright, pop sound – but musical hooks deserving of the placement are rare.Â
At the core, the songwriting itself showcases sweet love songs from vocalist Stewart. In a similar vein to British stars Coldplay or The Killers (by whom the band is clearly inspired), Stewart wears his lyrical heart on his sleeve. Slowly Slowly hasn’t quite mastered the art of shaping their songs for the ascension, which is demanding of the genre. A bridge, let alone a modulation, isn’t a standard feature on Forgiving Spree’s tracks.Â
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But Slowly Slowly is already experiencing success with this new album. It debuted on ARIA’s Australian Album chart at number one. The songs are inoffensive and bright. It’s a pop rock album for all ages, but it may have needed a little longer in the studio.Â
Slowly Slowy will be on tour in April 2025 across WA, NSW and Victoria.
