Spiritualized—the long-term psych-pop project of English songwriter J Spaceman (Jason Pierce), former member of Spacemen 3—is a band whose music seems tailor-made for our world of pandemic-born isolation. Pierce’s breakthrough, 1997’s Ladies and Gentleman We Are Floating in Space set the tone 25 years ago: This is gorgeous, ornate and ambitious psychedelic music that dances and twirls inside your head as if you were the last person on earth. The best Spiritualized songs create a feeling of musical liftoff—an aural sunrise, where the world feels wide open and empty. On Everything Was Beautiful, the band’s first album in four years, Pierce relies on many of his old tricks, but the music still comes out sounding fresh and colorful. The Spiritualized you fell in love with decades ago remains the Spiritualized of 2022. Sometimes that dependability makes you do a double take. First single and album opener “Always Together With You” sounds so close to the title track of Ladies and Gentleman that you may double check which record you’re listening to. But it’s hard to hate when that sound is so engrossing: It’s a tune that builds with time, slowly and methodically, until its sixth minute, when you hear Pierce’s cool vocals over a choir, cartwheeling guitars, percussive fireworks and bells and strings. More than 30 musicians played on Everything Was Beautiful— Pierce alone plays 16 different instruments—but that maximalist aesthetic still results in a headphone record best suited for your next solo trip. Pierce breaks the mold with “Crazy,” a slow, woozy country-soul duet with Nikki Lane. “I hope in time that we might find a way/ Lord knows how time can be cruel,” they sing. It sure can. But not to Spiritualized—this heady sound feels more vital than ever. Please enjoy this full-length feature from Relix Magazine. Not a subscriber? Show your support for only $2/month