With 2015’s Get to Heaven, Everything Everything’s Jonathan Higgs began writing less cryptic, more accessible lyrics, reflecting his anxiety at a chaotic world. The process continues with A Fever Dream, the absurdity of President Trump explicitly referred to on Big Game (“Even little children see through you”). The frantic Ivory Tower, meanwhile, finds time to take aim at both small-minded racists and liberals.
Musically, there’s a playful restlessness throughout, with rock and electronica constantly being twisted into imaginative shapes. Night of the Long Knives and Desire are two of their most infectious songs to date, while the uncharacteristically minimal piano ballad New Deep is no less affecting for being so succinct.
