The Amazons are back with a new album, How Will I Know if Heaven Will Find Me? that came out on September 9th, following The Amazons (2017) and Future Dust (2019), which topped the UK charts in eighth and ninth position respectively. It marks the exploration of a new, more uplifting and hopeful sound for the band. It is composed of eleven singable, anthemic songs. I’ve had the privilege to interview Matt Thomson, the band’s frontman, who shared some interesting insights on the band’s latest work.
The album was written between the end of 2020 and 2021, in the middle of the pandemic. As Thomson stated, “It was really at the end of 2020 that we had some breakthroughs. You could see just elements, the backbone of the record, starting to emerge”. However, the turning point happened in 2021. “Then, in 2021 we had a lot of tunes which had a lyrical theme, and we knew this was the blueprint of the sound. We decided to use these songs as the starting point of the record”.
The album marks an important turn for the band in terms of their sound. It has optimistic, confident vibes compared with their previous works, especially Future Dust. This necessity to look forward especially transpires in songs like ‘How Will I Know’, ‘Bloodrush’, ‘There’s a Light’, ‘Northern Star’ and ‘In the Morning’, manifesting itself in crunchy guitar riffs and extremely singable choruses. Nevertheless, this sensation emerges from literally every song of the album, even in those which deal with serious themes or more personal situations.
According to Thomson, the band realized they needed to adopt a different sound and approach during their second album tour. The choice came out of the necessity to make the audience feel more connected with the band on stage. “We felt we were going to make some music that was going to promote a more communal feeling. We had loads of songs from the previous two albums that were a joy to play as a band, but this separated us from the audience”. Thomson tells how they would “stretch these songs out” and, for example, play long guitar solos. “Ultimately, I don’t know what we were expecting, but we realized that the audience was just standing and watching. The thing you get the biggest thrill out [when on stage] is the connection with the audience.”
The sound and tone of the album were also a direct consequence of its inspiration. The work deals with Thomson’s long-distance relationship during the pandemic. “In a long-distance relationship when you see each other it can be quite episodic. The album is like one of these episodes, like the story of a two-three-week trip, and the songs all correspond with the different stages of when I see this person. When I think of ‘Say It Again’, I think of ‘early on’ in this episode. It’s a morning song, the calmness in the morning with the promise of the rest of the day.” He continues “Instead, ‘I’m Not Ready’ is very much like ‘I’m going to go on a plane tomorrow and I don’t know when I’m going to see this person again’”.
An interesting aspect of the album is that the songs don’t have direct references to Thomson’s girlfriend and specific places or situations. This peculiarity “came out through just trying it out. We were trying to put in detail, markers, and specific locations. We’d stick with a location, but then we’d realize that it made the song smaller and that it didn’t match how I wanted to feel about it. I wanted to be more general because I think emotions are a broader stroke.
The album features a punchy, loud rock sound, almost as if it was recorded live in a large venue. According to Thomson, the band did not obtain this sound intentionally. “We could try to do anything, and it would sound like it was recorded live. To me, it just adds that quality, with John playing the drums, Chris playing guitar and Elliot playing bass. We almost don’t have a choice on our own sound”. Even if they explored different possibilities and ways of playing with their producer Jim Abbiss (Arctic Monkeys, Arcade Fire, Adele), especially in ‘There’s A Light’, “the songs just sound like The Amazons, you can’t get away from it. All our micro-decisions accumulate to our sound.”.
Thomson’s favourite songs on the record are ‘Northern Star’ – “that’s probably the most vulnerable and the most explicit about how I feel to this person” and ‘Say it Again’.
The Amazons are on world tour, having played Whelan’s, Dublin, on October 5th.
