SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: ALABAMA SHAKES – I MUST BE DREAMING

ALABAMA SHAKES
I MUST BE DREAMING
ISLAND RECORDS

Alabama Shakes, an Athens, Alabama-based blues rock band, released their 3rd  studio album I Must Be Dreaming. The LP was produced by the group in collaboration with Grammy Award-winning producer Shawn Everett.

The album opens with “Tea Time,” which blends 70s blues with modern production. Brittany Howard’s vocals open this record with confidence across the laid-back track. I Must Be Dreaming is an uplifting album with an underlying message of hope and change, delivered well on the track “I Feel Hope Coming.” The political messaging across the LP is well constructed behind blues/folk guitars across the song “American Dream,” with a call to action on gun reform and a feeling of dread that is tied into waiting for eventual social justice to happen.

The electric/soul track “Waist Deep” is a standout moment on this record with lyrical variety and captivating production that explores looking back on the past and moving on. Certain moments on this record contain psychedelic soft rock influence that takes center stage on “How Love’s Supposed To Go.”

Alabama Shakes transforms political heaviness into music with a distinctive sound in the blues music genre. Marking the soul group’s first release since 2015, the album was released at the right time with the intent to highlight struggle and perseverance in 2026 through the 11-track LP.

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