Album Review: New Miserable Experience – Gild The Lily (Pelagic Records)

New Miserable Experience, the Philadelphia-rooted collective that features members of Rosetta, Rivers of Nihil and Revocation, are back with their third album, ‘Gild the Lily’. Out on January 23rd, 2025, via Pelagic Records.

I think it’s safe to say that what New Miserable Experience offer isn’t for everyone and if you’re new to the band (like me), you might be surprised by how different an entity it is compared to the members’ other work. Which is kind of the point, right? If you want to hear Rosetta, Rivers of Nihil and Revocation, then just go listen to them. This is New Miserable Experience, and their sound can best be summed up as alternative synth rock. Yet, that simplified description fails to do the unique makeup of the band and this album justice.

With deep rivets of melancholic pop, experimental post rock dramatics, and thick layers of unpredictable synth, there’s no easy way to describe Gild the Lily and even after listening to it several times, I’m still not really sure how I feel about it.

It all comes down to the melancholic pop side of things and how, sometimes, that just doesn’t work for me. I dig synth and I dig the way that New Miserable Experience uses it to create many memorable tracks. Memorable tracks like The Devil We Know, which goes from fuzzy industrial-like synth to immersive post melody in style. Memorable tracks like Payback from God, with its infectious chorus and potent lyrics. Memorable tracks like Yours to Bury, with its gorgeous atmosphere and airy vocals, and memorable tracks like Letters to Insomnia, a laidback poppy anthem.

These are some of my favourites, complemented by a mixture of varied and challenging ideas elsewhere. An open mind is necessary, and even then, it might not be enough. I consider myself very open-minded musically, and while my taste does sit on the heavier, rockier, and more alternative side of things, I’m always game to try something new. This is the ultimate take away from Gild the Lily. It’s new, it’s fresh, it’s interesting, and feels very creative.

It’s not a complex listen, even though I’ve called it challenging. No, the challenge comes the genre blending, heavy focus on synth, and eclectic exploration of pop. Compositionally, it’s simple enough, with straight-forward structure that will have wider appeal outside the alternative world. Even the notable fact that it’s saturated in gloom won’t change that.

What we have here is one of the best examples of talented people creating something that they want to hear. If it happens to grab attention outside of that circle, that’s great, but it’s not necessary. It is going to be one of the most unique records of the 2026, polarising all who hear it, and creating a ton of debate.

Bet you that a couple of tracks get stuck in your head, no matter what.

New Miserable Experience – Gild the Lily Track Listing:

1. Heartsick
2. Ordinary People
3. The Devil We Know
4. In the House of Denial
5. Infinite Sadness
6. Payback From God
7. Yours to Bury
8. Perfect Things
9. Letters to Insomnia
10. Perfect Blue
11. Running the Fear of it Dry
12. Ataraxia

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