REVIEW: Meena – ‘Different Now’

Meena’s debut album ‘Different Now’ is the sound of a band stretching their limbs without losing sight of the quiet magic that made them worth following in the first place. Over the past five years and three EPs, the Manchester quartet have carved out their own twilight zone, one where shoegaze glow meets and electronic pulse. But here, that world feels bigger, more intricate, and just a touch bolder.

From the opening moments of ‘Doreen’, where shimmering strings wrap around a crystalline beat, there’s a sense that Meena have tightened their focus without sanding down their haze. They still trade in breathy intimacy and blurred edges, but now the light cuts through more often, a glint of clarity breaking the fog.

The tracklist flows like a carefully plotted journey. ‘Wait’ carries a low-lit tension, its echoing guitar cries hovering over a heartbeat rhythm. ‘Wonder’ swells with cinematic percussion before ‘Somebody’ unfurls into a dusky anthem, its rise and release perfectly paced. By the time ‘Peter ‘drifts between hush and drive in the closing stretch, you’re suspended between stillness and motion, exactly where Meena have always wanted you to be.

‘Different Now’ solidifies Meena’s place in the shoegaze-adjacent underground. It’s a debut that lures you into familiar shadows, then slips open doors to unexpected vistas. For a record built on subtlety, it leaves a surprisingly lasting mark.