If you like, Midlake have now caught up – three albums with singer and songwriter Tim Smith, three albums without him – and with guitarist Eric Pulido stepping in as frontman. The great thing about it: you still can’t detect anything like a break between these tinkerers who once moved from jazz to folky realms.
Editorial recommendations
And so A BRIDGE TO FAR fits into the band’s work with a sound that is familiar on the one hand and yet doesn’t sound like tried-and-tested old formulas. Rather, Midlake shift their focus a little further towards the soft rock Fleetwood Mac reminiscences that have always been close to them. They want to exude a feeling of hope with this record, explains Pulido, and that’s exactly what they do excellently with these ten buttery psychedelic songs.
From the sweetly fluted harmony vocal flatterer “Days Gone By” to the finely daubed deceleration miniature “The Valley Of Roseless Thorns”, you are carried through an album that lifts you out of all the crisis noise with its stunning melodic beauty, and at the same time ignites a gripping drive with songs like “The Ghouls” or “The Calling”. Nerdy good!
This review first appeared in Musikexpress 12/2025.