Album Review: Blanket – True Blue (Adventure Cat Records)

UK rock collective Blanket return with their highly anticipated new album ‘True Blue’, out January 16th via Adventure Cat Records.

Music to make you feel, the blending of post-rock, shoegaze, and alternative rock that Blanket offers impressed me so much in 2024 when they released their album, Ceremonia. Which means this record comes with some hefty expectations. I’m normally pretty good at tempering that side of things, but I will admit to being a little demanding as far as this album goes.

Thankfully, Blanket are a fantastic band with a ton of creativity oozing from within. A band with an understanding of how experimentation and emotion can comfortably combine to create something that the listener simply marvels at. Which should be enough to tell you that I love this record, except there is something extra special about it. Something that makes this the most authentic sounding record the band has produced to date. Is this Blanket at their most exposed and raw? It sure feels like it, but it also comes with effervescent dreaminess, deep melodies, vivid atmosphere, and a ton of polish.

Opening with sounds and noise that could perfectly summarise the modern mind as it tries to navigate the chaos of the world, The Swallows reflecting in the Water sets the scene. All so Hole in My Head can then pull things effortlessly in a more expressive, calmer, and dramatic direction. Blanket’s ability to heavy up their alternative rock ways is on show here, showcasing genre-bending at its best.

There’s a bit of buoyancy with Levitate, where Blanket’s sublime light melodies meet experimental rock heftiness in style. Where the dreaminess comes from the vocals and post-infused guitars, but the drums act like a counterweight to keep everything well balanced. It’s a track complimented by the more intense Bind, a track that features Wayside and gets more colourful as it goes on, leading to an ending that is grand sounding.

I’m a big fan of that track, but I’m also a big fan of the more laidback Leaning on You. A track that embodies the ‘nostalgia’ feel that Blanket was going for here.

The second guest is singer Lynsey Ward (Exploring Birdsong), who shines brightly on the hazy Summer Skin. A bubbling blast of alternative rock that gets more intense in the chorus and culminates in heaviness, especially the way that the vocals scream and shout. Then it’s time for a lengthier trawl into the psyche of Blanket with the immersive Wallflower and title track. The latter is the longer of the two at over eight minutes, but the former is no slouch at over seven.

With that one, we get textured post rock, gorgeous gaze-infused melodies, and layered alternative dramatics and detail that makes it feel half its length. Whereas the latter’s emotional depth and value is second to none. An exclamation mark on the album, it’s not just the fact that the alternative gaze-infused energy of the track has potency, it’s that as it goes on, it becomes more emotionally intense. A fabulous pairing to end another colossal Blanket release.

Blanket – True Blue Track Listing:

1. The Swallows reflecting in the Water
2. Hole in My Head
3. Levitate
4. Bind (feat. Wayside)
5. Leaning on You
6. Summer Skin (feat. Lynsey Ward)
7. Wallflower
8. True Blue

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