8/10

Dead Slow Hoot’s 'Orbits Intervened' marks one of their more progressive and innovative releases to date. Their fourth full-length outing reads like a quiet reckoning, written with both grit and grace. It finds frontman Hugo Lynch standing half in shadow as he traces the long arcs of memory, reckoning, and change.

There’s an emotional looseness in how freely the band seems to breathe now. Gone is any pretense of rigidity as they look to explore a more diverse sound that never looks to repeat itself. Opening track 'It Takes a Lifetime' lays the groundwork for what’s to come: songwriting rooted in the deeply personal, yet delivered with an eye toward universal truths.

Following with 'Worried About the Rain' and 'Sleeping Before the Big Day', these two wrestle with innocence and anticipation, two sides of the same youthful coin. The former feels like a haunted portrait of adolescence, full of unsent messages and the ache of what could’ve been. The latter is more buoyant, hinting at the possibility of shared momentum, of healing in tandem.

The album’s thematic weight peaks on 'Satellite' and 'All My Love Remains', the latter a hymn exploring grief with an intimate, unresolved, and gently shattering predisposition. It doesn’t attempt closure, but instead honours the unspoken with humility and heart.

What makes 'Orbits Intervened' so remarkable is its restraint in its power. Dead Slow Hoot look to carve out a space for vulnerability and the kind of stories that don’t wrap up neatly. It’s melancholic, yes, but also kind and quietly luminous as well. This is a record made by people who’ve stopped trying to sound like anyone but themselves, and in doing so, they’ve found honesty that resonates without needing to shout.