Chrome

Catherine Wheel’s followup to Ferment was, in certain ways, almost a retread of that album, with the combination of shoegaze-adjacent guitar overload and a clear appreciation of classic rock’s own 70s sonic explorations still in effect. But there was enough going on to make Chrome feel like an elaboration rather than a continuation: lead single “Crank” had a quicker kick to it than their breakthrough “Black Metallic,” not to mention arresting moments of vocal overdubs from Rob Dickinson, while songs like the wrenching “Pain” and the skybound “Ursa Major Space Station” were beautiful constructions.