Engineers
Always Returning
Release Date: Sep 16, 2014
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Indie Rock, Dream Pop
Record label: Kscope
Music Critic Score
How the Music Critic Score works
Buy Always Returning from Amazon
Album Review: Always Returning by Engineers
Great, Based on 3 Critics
Based on rating 8/10
When we last heard from British dream pop band Engineers, they had morphed into a sort of 2.0 phase with founding members Dan McBean and Andrew Sweeney leaving the band and renowned German musician/producer Ulrich Schnauss along with Daniel Land and Matthew Linley joining. The new members' influence was evident, especially Schnauss', whose own dreamy shoegaze and warm electronica have made him a critical favorite since the late-'90s. The new lineup's first effort, 2010's In Praise of More, was hailed as an impressive turning point for the band, though the creative upheavals and personnel jostling would continue over the next few years.
Based on rating 4/5
Led by Mark Peters, shoegaze misfits Engineers have been making brilliant records for nearly 10 years now, yet the limelight afforded to similar-sounding bands such as The Horrors has always eluded them. On ‘Always Returning’, their fourth album, they’ve delivered yet again. ‘Bless The Painter’, which spits at a social-media generation obsessed with photographing artworks for their news feeds rather than to admire their beauty, sets a glacial tempo.
Based on rating 6.5/10
Engineers have done a bit of tinkering in the engine room since its third and last album, In Praise of More (2010). A round of lineup changes—the second in the U.K.-based band's history-has pared the dream pop purveyors down to a trio. Multi-instrumentalist Mark Peters retains his role as band leader with drummer Matthew Linley and renowned German electronic musician and producer Ulrich Schnauss in supporting roles.
'Always Returning'
is available now