There are times of year when albums just sound better. For some reason, listening to R.E.M. in the autumn just sounds perfect. In the summer it sounds great, but in the autumn it just hits harder. Listening to ‘3’, the new Penelope Isles album, as the leaves are turning from green to gold makes the woozy and melancholy songs sound better. In the four years’ since came out Lily and Jack Wolter have both recorded, and released, solo albums. This time away from the day job seems to have fortified their sibling, and songwriting bond. The songs on ‘3’ are some of the strongest they’ve ever released.  

The album opens with electronic blips. ‘Another Kind Of Love’ then flits between the songs intro and what we historically expect from the band. Next up is ‘I Loved You Robert Pattinson’. Here the band really left loose. These first two songs are unlike the usual opening salvo of Penny Isles albums. The only problem is the outro is so fierce it sounds like the end of the album with the world on fire as the song fades out. ‘Bon-bains’ takes things down a bit. Lily’s vocals are some of the best she’s ever recorded – half sung, half whispered; it feels more like an eaves dropping on a private conversation than a song. The final third features a searing, and fuzzed up, guitar solo before it all fades away to lone guitar notes. ‘Birthdays’ features another wonky electronic intro, before those trademark chords and lilting vocals kick in. ‘Moonwalker’ is the strongest song on the album. The backing track is a dirty shoegaze affair while Jack’s lilting vocals float above it perfectly. And the throbbing feedback outro feels like a masterstroke. ‘Thinking Seat’ is classic Penny Isles. Muted guitars, jangly melodies, Lily’s glorious vocals and those layered harmonies. 

Part of the album’s charm but be due to where it was recorded. Their past two albums were recorded in various studios in and around Brighton, giving the albums a delightfully ramshackle charm. This time the album was recorded in one place and in Brighton. The Wolters, and drummer Joe Taylor, decamped to the Isle of Lewis off Scotland’s Northwest coast for 10 days. The isolation of being 20-miles away from the nearest shop, and the short stay to get everything recorded, gives the album a feeling missing on their previous releases. Outside the windows of the studio, they could see the waves constantly pulling back from land. The songs feature a kind of backwash to them. A kind of movement that is absent on their previous albums. Despite being away from their homes, Brighton was on their minds. ‘Bom Bane’s’ is about an unconventional restaurant in Kemptown. ‘Embo’ is about their old seafront flat in Embassy Court. 

‘3’ feels like the kind of album that isn’t really made anymore. It’s an album by an experienced band (touring and writing) who have had some success under their belt. They know their way around a studio. They know how to get the songs out of their heads on to record, and, most importantly they have the confidence to follow their muse. ‘Bom-bains’ has one of the best lyrics on the album “Mind as you go, Don’t slip on the floor and go flying to Porto. It’s a stone’s throw, But I’m doing okay. I’ll be back in time for a Penny Isles show”. This self-referential lyric doesn’t feel like it would have been possible a few years ago. The self-confidence of both Lily and Jack releasing solo albums since 2022’s ‘Which Way to Happy’ seems to be paying dividends. How many bands on their third, or fourth, album have this level of courage to write the songs they want rather than chasing hits or, fleeting, popular styles. Its brave. And this is what makes ‘3’ such a delight to listen to again. Jack and Lily are also taking some risks. The album is fuzzier and more abrasive than their previous outings, but the core elements are there. Chugging guitars. Killer harmonies (that only siblings seem to have). ‘3’ is the strongest, and most enjoyable, album the Wolters have released to date. The addition of electronics gives the whole album textures, and tones, that the previous releases haven’t. This is definitely an album of the year! Third times a charm, eh?

8/10