I've been intrigued and a little confused by the way Black Country, New Road's 2022 album Ants from Up the There has been embraced as a modern classic by a certain brand of very online Gen Z music nerd. It's nice but extremely 2007-sounding, abounding with theatre-kid cuteness and slightly ramshackle chamber pop orchestrations.
But with the singles from the upcoming Forever Howlong (out April 4 on Ninja Tune), I finally "get" it. The latest of these, the six-and-a-half-minute "For the Cold Country," is especially transcendent, with whimsical woodland folk à la Joanna Newsom swelling into a waltzing lilt and ending with skronky blasts of noisy rock. It's still very 2007, but the melodies are beautiful enough to stand out in any era.
