Like everybody else in 2020, the members of Los Angeles indie-rock band Aloud were stuck at home. With a lush new album,, that they were unable to take on tour, bandleaders Jen de la Osa and Henry Beguiristain instead turned their attention to shaping their next project, which becameAloud’s sixth LP is a pandemic album for sure, in a thematic sense and also from a logistical standpoint.
Not every musical palette works here. Despite interlocking vocal harmonies from de la Osa and Beguiristain, the acoustic “Morning Moon” feels slight, while the upbeat “Apollo” reaches for an anthemic grandeur it doesn’t quite achieve. All the same, there’s plenty that’s compelling about these 10 songs, from the slinky groove of “Big Blue” to the hip-shaking boogie of “Stranger in the Alps.