Review by Dom Vigil
The most exciting part of a new Enter Shikari album is the uncertainty that comes along with it. Not the uncertainty of whether or not the album will be good, but more so what the hell it’s going to sound like. Sure, throughout the course of their lifetimes, most bands will experiment with their sounds or change it completely, but Enter Shikari could easily write the book on genre bending. The band has a massive catalogue with each of their releases sounding entirely different from the next, but they all remain so effortlessly Shikari. Their latest album, Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible is no exception.
Enter Shikari’s 2017 release, The Spark found the band exploring new sonic and emotional territory for their most vulnerable release to date, and Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible uses it as a pushing-off point, with some moments of the new album serving as a callback to their earlier work while much of it charges forward fearlessly into The Great Unknown (which is coincidentally the title of the album’s first track). Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible is the result of Enter Shikari asking themselves what they’re truly capable of, and that can clearly be heard throughout the album, both sonically and in its introspective and political lyrics.
There’s a lot to unpack on Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible, but that’s the one thing that all Enter Shikari albums have in common, so most fans will welcome it with open arms. Blink and you miss it genre jumps between the the massive, “{ The Dreamer’s Hotel }” or “Crossing The Rubicon” to the glitchy, EDM-influenced songs like “modern living…” and “apocoholics anonymous (main theme in B minor)” will have your head spinning before the stunning “the pressure’s on.” comes in and slows things down. But don’t be fooled – there are absolutely no filler songs on this album. Even “the pressure’s on.” features powerful lyricism like the line, “You try to tell me that everything will be fine / I appreciate your belief but I’m not sure you’re right”. Then there’s “Waltzing off the Face of the Earth (I. Crescendo)”, which does what Enter Shikari does best, blending spectacular songwriting with powerful commentary with the line “Our future’s been denied and there’s nowhere to hide” delivered alongside a brass section.
The classical gem, “Elegy For Extinction”, which was recorded with City Of Prague Symphony Orchestra and arranged by renowned composer George Fenton (Gandhi, Blue Planet, Planet Earth, Groundhog Day, My Name Is Joe) serves as a great palate cleanser before “Marionettes (I. The Discovery of Strings)” and “Marionettes (II. The Ascent)” begin to slowly bring the album to a close. Both parts of “Marionettes” urge listeners to question the truth, search for answers and take control of their own lives in the lines, “Now we spark the match / We set ourselves alight” and “Truth hurts / Now you know truth frees.” The finale comes in three parts with “satellites * *”, which longs for closeness and compassion and asks, “what is life without affection?”, the catchy as hell “thē kĭñg” and the stunning closer, “ Waltzing off the Face of the Earth (II. Piangevole)” which will make you want to hit play all over again.
Just as The Spark arrived at the perfect time in 2017’s political climate, providing fans with an emotional reset and something to truly connect with, Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible is a very timely release as well. The album not only manages to explore even more sounds and genres than Shakari’s earlier work (which is a feat in itself) but it effortlessly blends sinister, darker, and political lyrical content with an emotional, vulnerable and hopeful resolution. Enter Shikari have proven yet again that there’s still much to explore with Nothing Is True & Everything Is Possible, making it no surprise that they’re still going strong well over a decade into their career.
LISTEN TO: “{ The Dreamer’s Hotel }” “the pressure’s on.” or “Waltzing off the Face of the Earth (I. Crescendo)”
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