The Lemonheads – ‘Love Chant’ album review: a fitting slacker return
The classic indie slackers, The Lemonheads, return with their 11th studio album and first release of new material since 2006 with Love Chant. Inspired by Evan Dando’s recent relocation to Brazil and rekindling with collaborators, like honey to a cold, it’s sweet in all the right ways.
The Skinny: The indicative conceit of the album arrives with the very first track: ‘58 Second Song’ is actually over three minutes long, but it whisks by so breezily that its title doesn’t feel like a lie. That’s both the triumph and trial of the album: it’s solid and simple, but it doesn’t quite demand your attention.
In many ways, it picks up where their previous self-titled comeback from 2006 left off, making for a record that doesn’t necessarily scream, ‘We’re back’, and more so mutters, ‘Here are a few things I’ve been working on alongside the likes of J Mascis, Julia Hatfield, and a few others over a brew’.
Alas, that’s always been part of the charm of Evan Dando’s unassuming songwriting and lyrics about how he never thought he’d see the day return where he could write a song in a single night again, imbue the album with his typically cagey sincerity.
Cleverly, it retains a rough-shod production and avoids digital polish, carrying through that unemployed, stoned McCartney melodicism.
The Verdict: Will it see fans giving well-thumbed copies of Car Button Cloth some much-needed rest in a few year’s time? Probably not.
But for now, it will at least give it respite and offer a promising snapshot of what might lie ahead for Dando as he rediscovers his groove in the Southern Hemisphere thanks to a helping hand from some familiar friends in a creative realm where he still feels safe, and has plenty of charms to offer.
Defining song: ‘Cell Phone Blues’
Release date: October 24th, 2025 | Producer: Apollo Nove | Label: Fire Records
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