Nestled inside Fontaines D.C.'s Dopamine Chamber echo chamber, World News released their debut album, In Purgatory.

I massively respect the introduction track, Frog. The daring, fierce instrumental build-up would be the outro to another band’s album after they’ve spent ten tracks warming you up. World News dive straight in and tell you how it’s going to be. It takes 2:19 for the first vocals to surface. Brilliant.

World News have carved out their unique distinction despite sounding incredibly late ’70s/’80s. There’s a brightness to everything which goes beyond just the production.

They’ve managed to amalgamate their tools into erratic raindrops that form a perfectly coherent tune, confusing yet calming, so you stop trying to make sense of it and absorb it as a whole. Like one of those illusions where you must unfocus your eyes to see the true image, you have to do the same here with your ears.

Alex Evans has even stated in an interview with Mundane Mag, “Over the years people have mined the songwriting mine to almost depletion, but there are still nuggets in there waiting to be discovered.”

He’s right, and often the landscape can feel scalped and barren. But then you do have bands like World News emerging out of those pits, covered in dirt, diamond in hand and a smile that suggests to you they know they’ve cracked it.

I think a large difference comes from their extended arrangements. Commonly now, a drawn-out ending is layered in repetitive lyrics. World News opt to say what needs to be said, then say it again, just this time with instruments alone.

I Don’t Hate You is a fine example. Two songs in one. The explanation of an internal battle surfacing to affect external relationships for the first two minutes. They then proceed to explode into one of the finest stories ever told between bass and guitars.

It has the locomotive acoustic guitar strumming with a glimmering reverb, and prevalent bouncy distorted bass of The Smiths' Bigmouth Strikes Again.

Sidestep starts with flanged helicopter propeller-sounding panning guitar. It expands the plane that World News have built on as a tight-knit quartet.

The album is a continuation of these jangly tones sweeping through like light wind on top of snippets of thoughts and feelings from Alex Evans.

It’s a bold debut album, in the most discreet way. A collection of their best work dating as far back as 2020. It etches the first official stamp on their album rack and stands as their plinth from which their future sounds arise.

I can see a solid fanbase forming around In Purgatory and an exciting time ahead for their tour dates from here forward.

I feel it’s hard for a band to see it this way as they’re in the thick of it, straight into touring songs they’ve been playing for a while now, but they should take some time to soak in this milestone.

[walks off into the horizon shredding a two-minute solo]