Everything Here And Now the new album from Happy Accidents isn’t the type of album you will be headbanging along nor drumming along to whilst in your car. Everything Here And Now is the type of album you will casually listen to as you unwind from a stressful day.
From the opening notes of ‘Nunhead’ to the final lines of ‘Sink‘. Happy Accident have crafted an album that is relaxing and enjoyable, but also technically sound and full of little surprises such as stunning harmonies and a phaser effect on ‘Text Me When Your Home’.
In terms of sound, Happy Accidents are extremely similar to Modern Baseball and the Front Bottoms. However Happy Accidents are unique in how they have both a male and female vocalist. This allows them to swap singers throughout Everything Here And Now, making the album much more ambient and showing a completely different side to Happy Accidents.
Through swapping vocalists, Happy Accidents stop Everything Here And Now becoming repetitive or dare I even say dull. The relief in knowing that they had avoided this pitfall washed over me early on with the third track ‘A Better Plan‘ the track that the vocalists swap over on. This leads into an album full of tracks where the duets make each song have an interesting place and fresh feel.
By making use of two vocalists with vastly different ranges Everything Here And Now is able to close strong with the final three songs on the album encapsulating all that is right with it. Happy Accidents push some boundaries with their sound. This does not mean they close with a huge bang though, instead, this 11-track album slowly fades out. This works in Happy Accidents favour however and acts to sum up what type of album Everything Here And Now is perfectly and leaves you wanting to listen to this album all over again.
Everything Here And Now is not an album that will be charging up the charts or defining a new generation of rock fans. What it does offer though is a soft alternative album that perfectly mixes sad lyrics with upbeat instrumentals, in a way that is both engaging yet relaxing.
