by Anthony V. Fraccalvieri
photo by Steve Gullick
It’s easy to forget the scope of influence that a band can have until you hear them again. “Future Love”, the latest single from England’s shoegaze pioneers Ride, sits right at home with dozens of young indie bands on the festival circuit nowadays. With a driving rock beat saturated with arpeggiated guitar fuzz — all sitting beneath lush, almost whispered vocal harmonies — the difference between Ride and their legions of acolytes is that they did it first, and still do it best. Their upcoming full-length, This Is Not a Safe Place, is produced by Erol Alkan, who also manned the helm of their 2017 comeback album Weather Diaries. Much like how George Martin is referred to as the fifth Beatle, the producer/artist relationship becomes all important when dealing with music this expansive. Alkan works the faders with the hands of a chemist, as Mark Gardener’s delicate voice swims atop his and Andy Bell’s dynamic dual guitar interplay.
