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Oct 24, 2023 Web Exclusive By Ian Rushbury

Nothing Lasts Forever is a pretty bleak album title. Is it full of maudlin ballads and the deafening sound of the wringing of hands? Surprisingly not. It’s a little bruised and slightly world weary, but the record has a quietly positive, hopeful outlook.

This album—Teenage Fanclub’s twelfth—is a beautifully polished version of what they’ve been doing for more than 30 years. 2021’s Endless Arcade saw the band in a surprisingly downbeat place. Founder member Norman Blake was dealing with some profound personal issues, which inevitably spilled over into his songwriting. Fortunately, Blake is in a much better place in 2023. Although he doesn’t shy from his trauma (“My life had lost its meaning/I was a lonely soul,” he sings on “I Left a Light On”), the overall mood is definitely “Keep Calm and Carry On.”

There is no radical reinvention on this album. Effortless, simple harmonies, nimble guitar playing, and rock-solid songwriting are the orders of the day, as always. There is a comforting warmth in Nothing Lasts Forever which cannot fail to lift the spirits. Euros Childs (formerly of Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci) has established himself as a full-time band member and his contributions add depth and sparkle to all the material here.

From the opening song and first single from the album, “Foreign Land,” to the slowly uncoiling closer, “I Will Love You,” Nothing Last Forever is a quiet delight. It’s the sound of a band who have come to terms with the fact they are no longer twenty-something indie kids leaping around a stage, buoyed by adrenaline and cheap beer. They’ve settled into middle age with grace and dignity and continue to prove that it’s still possible to make satisfying, memorable pop music in comfortable shoes. (www.teenagefanclub.com)

Author rating: 8/10