sound from their stellar 2024 debut, The Future Is Our Way Out. Opener“ There Always” finds them in familiar territory, with a 1950s crooner-meets-80s post-punk sound, especially with frontman Wes Leavins sounding eerily similar to Morrissey. But just when you think you ' ve figured out the album, in comes the lead single,“ Slumber Party,” with its frenetic energy. The jangly guitars, the smooth vocals, and the earworm hook make it an instant hit. New single“ I Danced With Another Love In My Dreams” takes a cue from The Cure: bright, vibrant music paired with somber lyrics. The song finds Leavins dreaming about committing infidelity and spending his waking hours questioning if he’ s“ looking to leave.” The excellent“ Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction” sounds triumphant with Leavins’ soaring vocals despite the ominous line“ I don’ t
have five years left / That ' s my prediction.” Like the aforementioned song, this one is upbeat and energetic, getting you moving despite the lyrics. Stand out track“ These Acts of Which Were Designed” sees the band broadening their sound with pulsating synths, heavy electronica, and watery guitars. Meanwhile, Leavins sings in a lower register that borders on sultry and haunting. It’ s a welcome sonic departure that shows where the band could easily take their sound. Things slow down with“ I Can’ t Have You All To Myself,” an introspective yet heartbreaking ballad about realizing when it’ s time to let go of the past. Leavins sings in a whisper, sounding so fragile as if his next breath will break him. Closing track“ Send Memories” is another tearjerker about longing for a past that no longer exists. It ends the album on a beautiful, albeit melancholy note.
Irreversible is another fantastic album from Brigitte Calls Me Baby, showing how much they’ ve grown in a short time. They’ re tighter and more self-assured, giving themselves room to play with their sound. Leavins shows off his impressive vocal range, making every single word he croons velvety-smooth( like“ Blue Velvet on DVD”). Yet he knows how to deliver a soft, gentle performance that’ ll bring you to tears. With songs spanning from upbeat, fun dance numbers to slow, introspective songs for lonely nights, every track hits. Despite strong comparisons to post-punk heroes like The Smiths and The Cure, the band doesn’ t rip them off. Rather, they update the sound for the modern age. With this album, Brigitte
Calls Me Baby is bound to break through to the mainstream.
– Ashley Perez-Hollingsworth
8
RUSH Grace Under Pressure
40th Anniversary( UMe / Mercury / Anthem)
The tenth album by adventurous Canadian hard-rock trio Rush continues but alters the new wave-friendly direction of the 1982 album Signals, retooling that prior album’ s approach to synthesizerheavy arrangements. There are still plenty of keyboards involved, but the fundamental textures of the songs are anchored in guitarist Alex Lifeson’ s lyrical phrasing and spacious sheets of electric rhythm. For Grace Under Pressure, the band parted ways with longtime producer Terry Brown, citing a desire to contemporize their progressive hard rock with alternative rock sounds of the era. Touchstones included drummer Neil Peart’ s and guitarist Alex Lifeson’ s fascination with the crafty pop of the Police and XTC, and bassist Geddy Lee’ s continuing interest in incorporating synthesizers a la bands like Ultravox. The PPG Wave 2.2 was heavily used to fill out the band’ s“ three-man orchestra.” Rush originally settled on U2 producer Steve Lillywhite to helm the recording. Lillywhite ultimately broke his handshake agreement and went on to helm Sparkle in the Rain for Simple Minds. Frustrated but not wanting to retreat to the familiarity of Brown, the group settled on British producer Peter Henderson. The band has never seemed terribly complimentary of the partnership, and the album has been somewhat polarizing in the Rush catalog. The songs are full of character, however, and loaded with more melody than Lee often gets credit for. Lifeson ' s guitar work is consistently interesting, adopting a chordal and harmonic
18 illinoisentertainer. com april 2026