It needs to be said straight away that you should never assume knowledge about a band. There’s always somebody who knows more about them than you do. So I’ll tell you what I know about Teenage Fanclub: “Do Not Dare To Dream” is their thirteenth album.
That’s it. I’ve heard of them, of course, but I’ve never heard the other twelve records.
This thing is quite lovely, though. And that’s enough to earn it a review on these pages.
“There Was You” is a lovely, gentle opening, almost country in its feel, and there’s something distinctly working class about the way it finds a silver lining in existence. It immediately makes you feel welcome, which turns out to be something of a theme.
“Tomorrow People” is ’60s-tinged, although its seemingly dystopian message is at odds with the music. Listen a little closer, however, and there’s hope in the future too. The hope that tomorrow’s people might be better than the idiots we’ve got these days, who’d apparently quite like to livestream a firing squad, for some reason.
There’s more ambition in the music than its gentleness might initially suggest. “Over And Over” has a touch of prog about it, but one thing I can say about Teenage Fanclub already is that Norman Blake has a way of hiding sadness in the words beneath a quite lovely, warming tune.
Effortlessly catchy and welcoming is how you’d describe “Be With You Tonight”, while “The Same Air” considers the bleakness of existence. The music makes those thoughts easy to sit with, even when the words themselves offer rather less comfort.
“I Do Not Dare To Dream” seems to revel in leaving everything behind. Maybe that ability to move on is part of what’s kept them going for all these years. I’ll leave the experts to decide that one.
The overriding thing about the record, though, is just how lovely it is. “Take Time”, with its beguiling organ, underlines the point. Whatever they do here, they seem to do it so well, and with such an ease that you can lose yourself in it.
“Day In The Sun” is slower and more reflective, before “Somewhere To Land” searches for somewhere to settle. The line about a glassy-eyed face in the mirror is the one that sticks. Maybe music is what keeps them grounded. Certainly, you can hear how it might.
“Young And Wise” looks back towards youth with a calmness that suits everything around it. There’s a contentment in the sound, even after all the sadness these songs have carried.
“Do Not Dare To Dream”, then, is so welcoming and so lovely that anybody could find the joy in it. Including me.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got another twelve records to listen to at some point over the next few weeks.
Rating: 8.5/10
