Breezbear – The Future of Love (Album Review)

Breezbear, an indie rock band from South Wales, released their new ten-track album The Future of Love in August. 

The album alternates between rock songs and other styles.

The title track takes the lead, opening with guitar and male voice who we hear sing ‘It’s you I’m thinking of’ and ‘We’ve found the future of love’. It radiates joy, lifted by a recurring ‘la la! la la!’ hook. The interplay of vocals and instrumentation keeps the song vibrant throughout. At one point, the singer’s voice soars, stretching the word ‘special’ in ‘we were something really special’ into a lingering, emotional flourish. Though I’ve talked about the song radiating joy, there’s something sad about the ‘we were’ part. It seems to me to speak of a love that’s no longer there.

‘The Waterslide’ follows. The crunchy electric guitar gives the song its rock-tinged, upbeat energy. A male voice leads, accompanied by a female singer who, though uncredited on Spotify, takes a brief solo at one point. This is one of those tracks you find yourself picking up a guitar to play along with. Nearly flawless, the instrumentation is edgy yet restrained, never overdoing it. The singer croons ‘Let’s talk about us’ before sliding into playful lines like ‘Climbing up the waterslide’, rhymed with ‘falling down the other side’. Themes of connection surface in ‘Some people think that they are alone in this life’ only to be encouraged to ‘get it right this time’. Now and then the song throws a joyous ‘na na na!’.

‘This is Going to Hurt Tomorrow’ features Jessie Jenkins. Though there’s a drum kick, the tempo and energy are low here, perhaps fitting for a song with a title like ‘hurt’. The lyrics evoke a sense of intimacy, beginning with the sugar rush of falling in love – the often-overwhelming feelings of early-stage romance. There are many themes of love to be drawn from the song. One of them is calling the partner to look inside the other, to discover what they see.

At one point, one partner runs their fingers through the other’s hair, a gesture they describe as ‘strange’. What they know, though, is that it’s going to ‘hurt’ tomorrow. This is a song of contradictions, or perhaps paradoxes. Whatever the pair do to each other, strange though it may be, tomorrow they’ll see things differently. And if that evokes imagery of pain or sorrow, there’s still hope that comes from the line that they are beginning to be alright.

‘We Fade’ returns us to rock territory. Accompanied by drums, the guitar takes on a crunchier tone, and the energy begins to overshadow lyrical clarity. The singer opens with the question: ‘Who said to you, “I don’t know?”’ – uncertain about who truly believed in them. At one point, the guitar yields to the drum kick. ‘Fade. We Fade. We Fade.’ There’s a palpable emotion here, with the note at the very end drawn out in elongation.

Lyrical clarity returns on ‘A Beautiful Day in Anytown’. The song’s driven by drums and kick, with guitar licks appearing intermittently. The song opens with a speech-like declaration about a man whose practiced smile reaches toward the heavens. While there’s a hint of gaiety in this description, it’s immediately undercut when we learn he was ready to drink poison. Yet the song doesn’t linger on this darkness, instead shifting to a celebration of a beautiful day in any town. It closes with the cynical spoken line: ‘The American dream is dead.’

‘Hello Sun’ is addressed directly to the sun, which the narrator admits they often take for granted. The song captures our affection for sunlight and, perhaps, summer itself. It welcomes the sun, with the narrator speaking in the third person, bidding ‘goodbye to winter.’ Curiously, there’s a sharp cry of ‘goddamn’, ironic given that we’ll hear that the sun makes life sweeter for them. Beneath it all, a soft, clean yet slightly crunchy guitar plays alongside an unrelenting bass and splashy, one-hit drum. We hear the line: ‘A little warmth is all we ever wanted’. 

‘We Love as Love as We Are Loved’ is primarily a guitar-driven song, though drums enter at a later stage. Featuring Joan Hoctor, the narrators bring us into the present moment, where they feel vividly alive. Yet, they also feel small, overwhelmed by a world gone mad and its reflection on their own sense of sanity.

‘Deep Water Swimming’ also features Joan Hoctor. The’s an understated continuous kick that goes with some clean guitar sounds. At one point, we hear that while they don’t know whether they’re winning, they’ll keep on swimming. The singers at points alternate between themselves. The alternation emphasises one of the song’s messages when after David Harries has sung that he always thought he could ‘find a love to call our own’, Joan Hoctor sings ‘Deeper, deeper! Deeper than the world’s ever known’.

There’s soulful instrumentation and singing on ‘4^th of July’, a song featuring Jessie Jenkins. I usually associate the 4th of July with American independence, and in South Wales the date carries no particular significance. Yet, for our two narrators, it holds weight. They admit they don’t know why they chose it – only that people often call it a special day. The narrators reflect on the line ‘she fell in love with you’, adding, ‘I do too’. It seems to tell the story of a love just out of reach, a fleeting passion they had hoped would endure. They think of this person constantly, longing to be by their side. In the end, it’s a heartbreak song it seems to me.

‘What Lovers Do’ closes the album. The song opens with lively drums before a soulful guitar slides in. Soon, a faint, heavy-crunch guitar hums beneath the rhythm, adding depth. Vocals come not only from David Harries but also from others, giving the track a layered feel.

The narrator speaks of changing his mind as easily as changing clothes, refusing to simply do as he’s told, letting the future unfold on its own terms. There’s a touch of rhyme in the delivery. He reflects on having seen the best in his lover, on having watched them endure hard times, and now senses that the ‘future’s breaking through’. It marks a turning point, a moment to embrace what lovers do best – holding hands, making promises, caring for one another – with the narrator guiding the way.

At one point, the voice soars, stretching out and leaving the instruments to carry the space. When the singing returns, we hear a series of cautions: don’t scratch at the wound; don’t live in reverse; don’t sugarcoat what you’ve seen; and accept that not every dog has its day. Against this backdrop, the refrain offers its remedy: do what lovers do. The song closes on a laugh.

SCORE/Good: This is a good album. I enjoyed the rock and roll elements, especially the crunchy eletric guitar sound. Another commendable thing is how many vocalists contributed to the album. With a title like ‘The Future of Love’, I think the band set high expectations when it comes to their subject: love.

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