THE HIVES - The Hives Forever Forever The Hives (2025)
Was it really needed? For whom? Who is this album for? Are they making it just for themselves? Questions that will always remain. Some have called this album a manifesto. But of what exactly? I’ve always used “manifesto” for movements that — most of the time, unknowingly— express an avant-garde… It’s a pleasant album, not a great one; engaging, though not especially memorable. A cute puppy you’d want to hold, not a wild animal overflowing with fury. But do we need fury? The other day I was amused by a comment from a rocker who recently resurfaced after a reunion, criticizing another musician, often labeled as “alternative.” The older rocker basically said: he keeps shouting and yelling... but what for and why? I thought it was a sharp and accurate critique addressed to that group, which, to me, smells like emptiness. And with this album, we’re not far off… Let me risk a comparison: The Hives are to the alternative scene what Glam Rock of the ’80s is to Death Metal… no judgment about their aims, because perhaps, for them, this is perfectly fine.