Keeley’s first full length album ‘Floating Above Everything Else’ was a game changer for the cult dream pop/shoegaze band. It showed how Keeley Moss and her assembled musicians could sustain a great sound far beyond their previous EP format, but also weave a compelling narrative. With a suite of songs largely devoted to the murder of traveller Inga Maria Hauser it blended great music with a thoughtful lyrical construct. It was clear from the beginning of their journey that Keeley were a cut above any similar bands, but, with its truly absorbing style, this album more than proved it. The recycling of the earlier ‘The Glitter & The Glue’ single certainly didn’t hurt either, since in terms of all round accessibility and catchiness, it’s one of Keeley’s strongest numbers.
An eagerly awaited follow up, ‘Beautiful Mysterious’ sees a few concessions to something slightly more commercial in places, but the “Keeley Sound” remains intact. If anything, it sounds stronger than ever, and for those who’ve found themselves attracted to the previous works’ lyrical elements, these songs probe even more deeply into Hauser’s tragic fate.
Against the rumble of a passing train, ‘A Doorway To Another World’ opens the album with one of Keeley’s most assured dream pop arrangements. Shimmering guitars weave something almost otherworldly, and from beneath, a solid bassline helps anchor a mid tempo. The echoes of a retro sound provide the perfect canvas here, as Moss takes the listener back to the mid 80s. “Sketch pads on the floor, it’s 1984” she sings, with her distinctive tones capturing a genuine pathos. By the end of the second verse, the blissed out Keeley sound hits full flow, but it’s actually simple chorus that really sticks. Utilising the title, Moss raises the overall tone, offering a mournful cry, before a world of heavy guitar effects fill instrumental spaces with a tone that sounds back masked, leaning further towards a classic shoegaze approach. The slightly poppier ‘Trans-Europe 18’ blends the dream pop with a perkier mood that feels a little closer to synth pop. In Keeley’s usual crossover style, of course, nothing remains quite so simple. The obvious late 80s influences that play out here are balanced by a repetitive rhythm that gently tips its hat in the direction of Neu!, and more specifically their brilliantly mechanical ‘Hallogallo’. The mechanical feel of the number is slowly offset by a great vocal where Moss uses a slightly phased delivery to share a floatier mood, which works brilliantly in contrast. Lyrically, the finer points of the narrative get a little lost behind the effects, but the main hook – from which, this album’s title is derived – and longer notes actually add a superb counter melody. In terms of adding a more sophisticated synth/pop element to the familiar elements of the Keeley sound, this is streets ahead of the band’s prior works.
Although that provides ‘Beautiful Mysterious’ with a really strong opening couplet, ‘Inga Hauser’ potentially raises the bar, sharing a slab of brilliant indie pop. Lyrically, its actually far more direct, too. Moss actually puts herself in place of the tragic heroine, singing the first verse in the first person, conveying excitement regarding the arrival of the train and the pending journey that would prove to be her last. It’s a genuinely haunting experience, despite the music having an uplifting quality – or perhaps because of that. The second part of the track feels a little more conventional when the lyric reverts to a third person describing the scene and the way Inga “made her mark”. With the two halves linked seamlessly via a simple hook and waves of 80s synth, and the unexpected presence of a huge, twangy guitar solo drawing more from a rock background, this becomes a true melting pot of sound. That said, the blend of pop, rock and synth-ish oriented influences feels incredibly natural, leading to one of Keeley’s most perfectly arranged tunes.
This album isn’t afraid to offer a couple tonal shifts, either. ‘Galloway Princess’ trades in the usual shimmering for a tougher groove. The steady rhythm and chunky guitar work that powers the song’s verses owes more to a 70s influence. There’s a pinch of glam within the swaggering sound, which works well against a non-committal voice, even though the two styles feel opposed. Hitting the chorus, a wall of distortion brings everything back to the expected jangle, but even here, there’s a feeling of Keeley wanting to explore something a little more unexpected. ‘Last Words’ meanwhile, finds the assembled musicians rocking out with a choppier guitar riff in places, before a busy chorus fuses layers of dreampop guitar to a rather buoyant melody. In terms of mixing a retro, dreampop sound with a more conventional pop-rock accessibility, this is an album standout, with its best moments coming from the way Moss drops a semi-lax voice against a strident bass and the swirling keys bring a strange dimension to otherwise radio-friendly indie pop.
Circulated ahead of the album, the more commercial ‘Forever Froze’ offers a great insight into the more melodic side of this body of work. The number shares a brilliant guitar riff during an ear-catching intro, which immediately sounds like the Keeley take on The Stone Roses’ ‘Waterfall’, but isn’t by any means a lazy rehash. Moving into into the body of the track, the repetitious guitar continues to make its presence felt, while a loop-ish drum part carries a faint echo of The Beatles’ ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’. As you might expect, this rather more retro sound is perfect for Keeley’s self-claimed “bliss out” sound, and her emotive voice sits very comfortably against the lightly psychedelic backdrop. It’s quite far removed from the usual dreampop, yet at the same time, everything fits very naturally in terms of this album as a whole. It’s great to hear Moss launching into a bigger guitar solo towards the track’s end, too, giving the feeling that everything would sound even better in the live setting.
Going even more deeply into a dreampop soundscape, there’s a mix of cleaner toned guitars ringing with bell like precision and more back masked soaring throughout ‘Days In A Daze’. This is classic Keeley. Although the music feels relatively predictable, it comes with a more professional and expensive sound than before, which is enough for to it to stand out on first play. Repeated listens also show off something deeper than those first impressions suggested, too. The bass playing here is lovely; the deep tones offer a great sound beneath the dream pop guitars, and although the vocal sometimes feels as if its playing second fiddle, Moss’s hazy tones work very well as extra instrumentation. Towards the end of this musical trip, ‘Waves of 1988’ offers a haunting intro where Moss reads out the destinations of Hauser’s unfinished journey. The music, meanwhile, works an arrangement where faint echoes of 80s Cure meet with something of a janglier persuasion, and the vocal crescendos even add some unexpected 60s melodicism. Between the cracks, you’ll find a more typical Keeley sound due to a couple of soaring guitar lines and a shimmering tone, but like ‘Inga Hauser’, the poppier elements are the more impressive, since they show Keeley pushing forward musically, unafraid of exploring new territory.
There’s a lot of material here that feels more accessible than ‘Floating…’. This is a good thing. Some of the musical hooks here – on ‘Inga Hauser’ and ‘Forever Froze’ in particular – are definitely strong enough, and almost pop-centric enough, to break Keeley away from the already committed dream pop fans and further towards a world of more curious and casual listeners. ‘Beautiful Mysterious’ manages to feel spacey and retro alternative, yet still sparkles with a fresh edge that makes the material feel relevant. Topping the previous album was a tall order, but this eleven track offering really brings the Keeley sound into sharp focus, sharing great songs throughout. A highly recommended listen.
October 2024