Seven albums in, White Lies continue to evolve while keeping their signature mix of shadowy synth-pop and widescreen emotion intact. Night Light finds the London trio leaning deeper into electronic textures than ever before, with the guitars now playing a supporting role to shimmering synths, pulsing basslines, and Harry McVeigh’s commanding baritone.
It’s a sleek, modern evolution that keeps the band’s DNA intact while exploring new sonic territory. The album bursts to life with Nothing On Me, a quickfire opener that clocks in at just 2:44. It’s an immediate standout – punchy, melodic, and utterly addictive. Before you know it, the song ends, just as it seems to hit its stride. It’s over too soon, leaving you wanting more, but perhaps that’s the point. As an opening statement, it’s a sharp and confident way to kick things off.
All The Best and Keep Up both take it down a notch while continuing to build the album’s pulse, layering gleaming synth hooks over tight, propulsive rhythms. The focus throughout Night Light is firmly on texture and mood, creating a cohesive soundscape that’s both darkly cinematic and emotionally resonant.
Track four, Juice, is classic White Lies—big, anthemic, and designed to fill venues. With its soaring chorus and throbbing synths, it’s easy to imagine it becoming a crowd favourite at gigs for years to come. It captures everything fans love about the band: the energy, the melancholy, and the irresistible sense of release.
Then comes Everything Is OK, perhaps the most beautifully haunting song the band has ever written. Stripped back and piano-driven, it showcases McVeigh’s voice at its most vulnerable. The simplicity of the arrangement allows the emotion to shine through, making it a genuine high point of the album.
Later, Going Nowhere carries the torch with a steady rhythm and wistful tone, leading into the album’s title track, Night Light, a slow builder that encapsulates the record’s atmosphere perfectly. Initially restrained, it drifts through glacial synth layers and subdued percussion, gradually swelling with emotion. The listener’s patience is rewarded just after the three-minute mark, when the song truly kicks in and lifts off into something euphoric.
I Just Wanna Win One Time injects a late burst of urgency before closer In The Middle brings the record to a stunning conclusion. It unfolds with an infectious, pulsating rhythm and a wash of euphoric synths that rise and shimmer with an almost cinematic intensity. Melancholic yet hopeful, it perfectly captures the duality at the heart of Night Light. As McVeigh’s vocals rise above the glimmering production, there’s a sense of closure, not finality, but fulfilment. It’s a flawless closer; expansive, emotive, and leaving the listener with a lingering sense of uplifted resolve.
If Night Light has one minor flaw, it’s that the restrained, synth-focused approach sometimes comes at the expense of the raw guitar energy that once defined White Lies’ sound. Yet, the trade-off results in a more mature and finely tuned record – one that rewards repeated listens.
Night Light is the sound of a band comfortable in their own skin, still finding new ways to illuminate the darkness.
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