The Feelies: Here Before

The Feelies
Here Before
Bar/None Records [2011]









Fire Note Says: The Feelies pick right back up where they left off on the timeless Here Before.

Album Review:
20 years is a long time for anybody and for a band it seems like an eternity. Well, for The Feelies, 20 years is last time they released an album of new music but 2011 brings you Here Before and marks their return featuring all the original members from the 86' era. The remarkable thing about this record is that The Feelies sound like they have not missed any time between recordings, as their indie jangle is well in tact and on rockers "When You Know" and "Time Is Right" the band sounds as fresh as they did in 1980. Here Before definitely puts a maturity factor in play and honestly I think you would be surprised if it didn't. This is reflective in several lyrics that do show The Feelies age but also does not find the band trying to hide the fact that their youthful vigor is well behind them. For longtime fans, Here Before should be a must pickup because its timeless batch of tracks helps create the best album the group has released since the 1986 classic The Good Earth and should redirect new listeners to their excellent back catalog. Hopefully this welcomed reunion will continue to yield results as waiting another 20 years just won't cut it!

Key Tracks: "Should Be Gone", "Time Is Right", "Morning Comes"

Bands With Similar Fire:
R.E.M.
The Soft Boys
Sebadoh

The Feelies: Crazy Rhythms & The Good Earth (Reissues) [Fire Note Review 9/10/09]

Official Feelies Website
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Bar/None Records

-Reviewed by Christopher Anthony