Primal Scream’s first album since 2016 Come Ahead is an ambitious but ultimately unsatisfying project. The band’s 12th record features some of frontman Bobby Gillespie’s most personal and introspective songwriting yet and according to him, it was the first time the lyrics came before the music.

This is arguably where the problem lies. Throughout the 11 tracks, and with a runtime of over an hour, the instrumentation starts strong and is often the most compelling part of the track but it is the writing itself and Bobby’s singing style which ultimately compromises it.

After their Mercury prize-winning album Screamadelica in 1991, they have continued to have all projects since compared to that record. 9 albums have been released, including Come Ahead, and the comparison to their most acclaimed record is still strong. But what made that LP so exciting and so beloved wasn’t Bobby’s writing or singing but the innovative production and composition, with instrumentation that combines club music and 60s rock.
‘Ready To Go Home’ starts the album off and it starts strong, with a gospel choir singing about returning home before the bass appears. It’s funky and infectious and grabs the attention of the listener – rewarding their attention with groove. It’s upbeat and catchy and makes you want to dance, the instruments so compelling that one can forgive the repetitive lyrics.

Where the LP flourishes is on these catchier tracks like ‘Love Insurrection’ and ‘Innocent Money’, which are quicker-paced and hold more of a groove; leaning into that dance genre aspect. Where it falters are on the songs that are slower like ‘Heal Yourself’ and ‘False Flags’, putting emphasis on the writing. This is a shame for there are elements of these tracks which seem to give hope for something greater but unfortunately don’t go further than just a hopeful promise. The emphasis on writing is a misstep for this record not just because of the quality of the lyrics but because he sings in such a way that there is no emotion to his voice and so the listener is not truly engaged in the story, gradually caring less and less as the song progresses.

Time and time again the composition of the track gives the listener false promise before it’s all overshadowed by the focus on the songwriting. On ‘Circus of Life’, Gillespie’s personal writing style for the record is shown most succinctly with lines such as: “Trying to fix a hole that will never be fixed,” and “Nothing gets better, it only gets worse.” Other weak lyricism can be seen elsewhere throughout the LP: “System is rigged like a Vegas casino.” – ‘Innocent Money’, “This ship is sailing/Into deep dark waters/All systems are failing/We go like cattle to the slaughter.” – ‘Deep Dark Waters’ and “We’re lost and we need direction/We need a love insurrection.” – ‘Love Insurrection’. The penultimate song ‘The Centre Cannot Hold’ is most likely a reference to the W.B. Yeats poem ‘The Second Coming’, fitting in line with the political despair that Gillespie has written about across this album but does so less eloquently compared to Yeats.

The length of the songs is another issue. When the focus is less on the narrative and more on the music itself, the length of each track is less of a concern. They can hold the attention of the listener with more ease due to the funkiness and grooviness of the instruments. The composition of the instruments is a true highlight of the album and helps save a lot of the tracks; especially when the writing can become repetitive or Gillespie tries to insert himself too much. But when the focus is taken away from the bass or the guitar and is instead placed back on the singing and the story, it becomes too self-indulgent and drags, losing the attention of the listener – seen most noticeably on ‘False Flags’ or ‘Settler’s Blues’.

Ultimately, Come Ahead is a promising and ambitious record with a lot going for it. The gospel choir and backing singers added an interesting aspect to the songs, the instruments were engaging and a true highlight – especially the bass which created a lot of groovy moments – but it was let down by a focus on being too narrative and introspective. The writing was often times uncomplying and Gillespie’s singing was unfortunately lacking of emotion and passion which caused it to feel boring and flat; a stark contrast to the interesting composition of the instruments.

Pre-order Come Ahead by Primal Scream HERE