After three years, our wait for The Pigeon Detectives next album is finally over.

In contrast with their earlier work, Broken Glances has a more contemplative feel, with somewhat more meaningful lyrics and less ‘happy-go-lucky indie rock band’ vibes. The album is a must for fans of The Pigeon Detectives, as the stark contrast between this and previous albums emphasises their development and maturity. True, ‘Enemy Lines’ is the clear banger, their debut music video, and more reminiscent of their older sound. However, it’s tracks like ‘Change My World’ that really mark the evolution of their sound.

While their development follows a similar trajectory to many  modern indie rock bands (i.e. The Wombats), turning more electronic and incorporating eerie sounding vocals, the Pigeon Detectives have made this change interesting and, on most tracks, successful. The only obvious exception is ‘Sounding the Alarm’. For me, it didn’t sound like The Pigeon Detectives at all; I had to double check I was even still on the right album. While change is welcome on the album more generally, this track feels too far a departure from the band’s classic, indie-Leeds sound.

Overall the album is a good listen, and made a ten-hour coach journey down South much, much more bearable. I hope to see them return to Reading and Leeds festival at some point in the future.

Freya Hillyer

[image: NME]