Album Review: DOPAMINE by NORMANDIE

Image: Normandie

For fans of Swedish three-piece Normandie, the highly anticipated wait for the follow-up to 2021’s Dark & Beautiful Secrets came to an end in early February with the release of fourth studio album, Dopamine. It was the culmination of the preceding half-a-year during which time no less than seven singles from the album’s total of eleven were let loose on a monthly basis. No doubt keen to strike while the iron was hot however, by release day the Dopamine dust had barely settled before Normandie were hitting the road, launching their 14-date European tour in Paris the following night.

The hint of a new track making its way into the musical pipeline was touted online back in July 2023 by way of a short clip featuring their now-ubiquitous yellow smiley graphic, set to somewhat juxtaposing ominous music, and accompanied by the question ‘tell me are you fucked up too?’. Well no, not as yet Normandie, but with a six month-wait to album launch, some diehard fans could have been.

Dopamine is succinct (at least by my standard measure: whether it can be completed within a single work commute – around 40 minutes) but progresses through with a relentless momentum, never giving the impression of getting bogged down or losing any of the characteristic energy that has come to be expected from a Normandie release. Mid-album Ritual and the reflective Butterflies each provide a sub-3-minute interlude of relative calm between punchy Blood in the Water and high-octane Colourblind, in which frontman Philip Strand’s powerful vocals feature at their intense best. Those more pacified, emotionally-exposed moments resonate strongly – Ritual, in particular, is excellent – but it is within the lively anthems where this album is likely to excel, especially with live audiences. All however file in neatly with the Dopamine narrative – of all the Normandie albums so far, this latest offering has the strongest feel of a consolidated, unified piece of work, best appreciated as a whole project, rather than a series of snappy standalones. The listener is encouraged at every turn to consider life’s highs and lows, and how the relentless pursuit of the highs can pull us into the lows with cruel irony. ‘Are you chasing after fires ‘till you’re burning out?’ enquires Flowers for the Grave – a lyrical entreaty to not throw away the present in the race for the fickle future of the imagination. Listen closely, and you could extract powerful messages here that hit with aching relevance to the tribulations of contemporary society. Take it at face value however, and Dopamine delivers its namesake by the bucket – Strand & Co. have cemented themselves as the worthy prescribers of the feel-good. It’s simply a lot of fun.

With the gradual trickle of new music being drip fed onto streaming platforms, that aforementioned Normandie fan base has been steadily consolidating. Dopamine comes on the back of a strong year for the Stockholm trio - they played 2023’s Reading and Leeds, billed on the same stage that hosted BRITs Rising Star-winning The Last Dinner Party and Sleep Token – both of which have seen explosive recognition with the launch of their respective debut and latest albums, albeit within very separate genres.  The rise of Normandie since 2016’s debut Inguz has not been quite so meteoric in pace but comes more with the feel of a plane taxiing to a runway, its drive increasing notably as it progressed through recent years - all culminating in a monthly Spotify listenership upwards of half a million come album release day. Maybe Dopamine will be Normandie’s ‘clear for take-off’ moment?

Verdict: 4/5