Preoccupations - Ill at ease (2025)

For their fifth album, Preoccupations have lightened up considerably, incorporating more keyboards, less misery, and more of a ‘pop’ sound. It opens with the hammering drums of Focus, a downright groovy post-punk tune, moody atmospheres underpinned by electro sounds. Bastards is quite throwaway, the poppiest thing the band have ever done, really channelling the 80s in its overall sound. It’s not their most distinctive song, and could be any vaguely indie band. The title track is really processed, with staccato percussion and pop vibes, but there’s something very pleasing about the way Flegel sings “ill at ease” like it’s one long, drawn-out syllable. These seemingly disparate elements make the track sound, for want of a better phrase, strange but kind of cool. Stranger again is the great big glorious mess of Retrograde, dominated by shaky synths and ringing guitars.

Andromeda reaches for U2 anthem territory and features a searing guitar solo midway through. It’s followed by brisk, almost funky Panic, which has a really interesting melody and an unusual arrangement. It’s very different from anything they’ve done before and arguably the high point of the album. While the breezy Sken again throws back to the 1980s, Krem2 continues in the tradition of Preoccupations’ closing tracks. With complex and interesting music, there’s real emotion and passion at the end of an almost life-affirming track.

How this album differs from its predecessor, Arrangements, is that the songs are tighter, and there is less room for them to breathe. The truth is, many of their older fans won’t know what to make of this at first, but it’s a brave new world for these guys. While another slab of misery might have been preferable, this is a more interesting follow-up.