7/10

On their seventh album 'Never/Know', The Kooks turn inward to revisit and question the past. Rather than attempting to replicate the scrappy spark of their early days, the indie stalwarts use this record as a mirror, asking who they are now and what still makes them tick. It’s a project defined not by nostalgia, but by clarity.

Self-produced by frontman Luke Pritchard, the album peels away the gloss of their festival-slaying years and reaches for something looser and more instinctive. Tracks like the tender standout 'If They Could Only Know' tug at the heartstrings without overplaying them, built on memories, loss, and love that lingers in absence. There’s genuine weight behind lines that evoke missed moments and empty kitchen chairs, delivered with warmth and wry wit.

'Never/Know' flits between jangling indie sunshine (with 'Sunny Baby' living up to its name), hazier reflections, and knowing nods to the genre’s past masters. Folding in off-kilter rhythms and subtle studio trickery, it’s clear why the band gravitated toward Wings' 'Arrow Through Me' to cover, with the song’s odd-time structure wrapped in smooth delivery reflects the very ethos of 'Never/Know'.

What’s most striking about the record is its sense of comfort in the unknown. By stripping back expectations, The Kooks sound freer than they have in years. Whether or not this is the start of a new chapter or a one-off detour, 'Never/Know' breathes in this new era; quietly brave, cleverly crafted, and unmistakably Kooks.