Since I first heard "It's Over" back in 2016, I've been fascinated by the London-based quartet Palace. While the fourth track from their debut drew me in, both So Long Forever and the 2019 follow-up Life After left me feeling like I was witnessing a band searching for their own sound, stuck somewhere between visions of Jeff Buckley and early Coldplay, yet headed in the right direction and only in need of just a little more time to wholly manifest themselves as a musical entity.
Shoals may not be the foursome fully realized, but it is a leap forward and easily their best LP from top to bottom. As with much of their previous work, a melancholy lingers over this 12-song set, but here it seems to cut deeper, the songs and arrangements more dialed in, a band nearly eight years into their recording career putting the pieces together into something more grand and exquisite than ever before. The January release date is likely no coincidence; Shoals is perfect for this time of year, or whenever you're feeling blue and want a moment to indulge in lament. A fine album that has grown on me with each listen, it also leaves me with nothing but optimism about the future of Palace.
![(each) PaytonZ [1g], J's](/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6MTM4Mjc2MCwicHVyIjoiYmxvYl9pZCJ9fQ==--f82803e92c5331762ca91051506cdeda79ef2b86/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6eyJmb3JtYXQiOiJwbmciLCJyZXNpemUiOiI0NjIgeCAzMTUiLCJjb252ZXJ0Ijoid2VicCJ9LCJwdXIiOiJ2YXJpYXRpb24ifX0=--d7c54d32abcb6ca24ad06932a0e70673da4d7d48/1749238673_4c0b21f4-b9c6-42b7-a23e-9f2a991c7d8a.png "(each) PaytonZ [1g], J's")
![(each) Yum Yum [1g], Dynamite Stix Infused](/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6MTMxNzQ1OSwicHVyIjoiYmxvYl9pZCJ9fQ==--9f067fa86cfbaee77e2c41c3285fab9701551ce1/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6eyJmb3JtYXQiOiJwbmciLCJyZXNpemUiOiI0NjIgeCAzMTUiLCJjb252ZXJ0Ijoid2VicCJ9LCJwdXIiOiJ2YXJpYXRpb24ifX0=--d7c54d32abcb6ca24ad06932a0e70673da4d7d48/1740705938_32283bcc-a9dd-4d90-a91c-ea515a0c0021.png "(each) Yum Yum [1g], Dynamite Stix Infused")
![(each) Jungle Pie [.7g]](/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6MTM4NDQ5MCwicHVyIjoiYmxvYl9pZCJ9fQ==--96e4c0e83db17599f27cf46e21355f3ef5101f70/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6eyJmb3JtYXQiOiJqcGciLCJyZXNpemUiOiI0NjIgeCAzMTUiLCJjb252ZXJ0Ijoid2VicCJ9LCJwdXIiOiJ2YXJpYXRpb24ifX0=--4c2b017c858149e948c71bab98eeffb13053e24c/438918066_1e24b7c0-4804-45ae-9b06-6863af825f68.png "(each) Jungle Pie [.7g]")
![(each) Hybrid Single Pre Roll (Daily Smoke) [.5g]](/rails/active_storage/representations/proxy/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6MTM4NjE4NSwicHVyIjoiYmxvYl9pZCJ9fQ==--485c171659ae8356e3e99280a92d5503aa1f4279/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6eyJmb3JtYXQiOiJqcGciLCJyZXNpemUiOiI0NjIgeCAzMTUiLCJjb252ZXJ0Ijoid2VicCJ9LCJwdXIiOiJ2YXJpYXRpb24ifX0=--4c2b017c858149e948c71bab98eeffb13053e24c/1747347242-do_preroll_single_halfgram_1920x1920.jpg "(each) Hybrid Single Pre Roll (Daily Smoke) [.5g]")
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