SVIIB should have been a swift successor to 2012’s Ghostory, School Of Seven Bells’ third full-length. Alejandra Deheza and Benjamin Curtis recorded most of it in 2012, before Curtis (who had previously been in Tripping Daisy and Secret Machines) was diagnosed with the lymphoma, which led to his death in 2013 at age 35. Deheza finished it last year with the help of Justin Meldal-Johnsen, who gets co-producer credit with Curtis.
Although the backstory is depressing, SVIIB is the band’s most uplifting album. It modernizes its shoegazey, synth-heavy style: it’s less Lush, but still lush; less Curve, more Chvrches. Deheza has said that the songs trace the arc of her on/o personal relationship with Curtis, and the most powerful tracks are anthemic love songs like “Ablaze” and “A Thousand Times More.” The sequencer-fueled rhythms and Deheza’s penchant for staccato vocals overwhelm some songs, but it’s hard not to root for SVIIB.
—Steve Klinge
