When Grant Nicholas announced that Feeder were embarking on an indefinite hiatus in 2012, it looked like the end for a band whose commercial ubiquity was sliding from guaranteed Top 10 to respectable Top 75. Feeder had grafted, been resilient in the face of tragedy, but when Nicholas decided to call a halt, most offered an unsurprised opinion that they’d had a good innings.
Having recharged and reassessed while sowing wild solo oats, Feeder are back in scintillating style. Sequenced with an old-school dynamism perfectly suited to vinyl, All Bright Electric finds the trio bursting through the glass ceiling of a familiar modus operandi with vitality to spare.
Blazing, fiercely contemporary opener Universe Of Life is irresistibly reminiscent of QOTSA. Elsewhere, there’s a brooding, quiet authority, and a vocal performance beyond anything Nicholas even promised previously, with maturity, emotion, reflection and soul.
Eskimo creeps up on you and delivers in spades. Guitars crush, tantalise and seduce. There are shades of Porcupine Tree, but not too many. Climactic closer Another Day On Earth finds strength in fragility, thus defining the compelling forward momentum of Feeder’s most satisfying album to date.
Screen For Me: Grant Nicholas and Feeder
Feeder's Grant Nicholas: "My solo record might surprise people."
