Corella - ‘Once Upon A Weekend’ Review: Unequivocally Corella at their best, and a debut that’ll stand the test of time
Corella’s Once Upon A Weekend is an indie debut that’ll stand the test of time. An album that’ll soundtrack your favourite of Summers and darkest of Winters, there’s a song on here for everyone.
★★★★★★★★☆☆
Credit: Corella 📸
On 3rd May 2024, Corella released the indie album of the Summer (and their long-awaited debut) Once Upon A Weekend. After relentless touring, garnering critical acclaim and amassing millions of streams, the rock quartet place their flag on where they’re at, where they’ve been and where they’re going across 11 stunning tracks.
Hailing from the birthplace of modern rock and roll, Manchester, Corella is Joel (vocals/guitar), Ben (vocals/bass), Jack (guitar) and James (drums). Performing since university, the band are known for their joyous mixture of tropical indie-pop and storming rock, backed by electrifying live appearances.
Don’t Stop Me is in-your-face indie rock n’ roll in its truest form, as you’re immediately captivated by the journey you’re about to embark on. Combining energetic riffs, infectious choruses and gorgeous melodies, Don’t Stop Me is your love note to everything life throws at you. You can’t help but become anything but entirely uplifted, blasting something of the sort on a road trip.
Following similar themes, Let Me Go is Corella’s ode to simplicity is best. There are nods to The Stone Roses and late-peers Viola Beach. The latter is apt after they dedicated a cover to the indie heroes last Summer. Let Me Go is noticeably understated. We can see this receiving a unique lease of life on stage.
Elsewhere Drifting and Head Underwater showcase the band’s heavier side, perhaps sitting as our favourites. Head Underwater, specifically, has been our favourite single to date. Both undeniably Summer anthems, they encapsulate everything that makes this a standout record and one that’ll stand the test of time on the indie scene.
Drifting weaves together the album themes, growing up and navigating adulthood, empowered by a youthful spirit. Daydreaming of fortune and misbehaving. Whereas, Head Underwater is ambitious, fearless and unrelenting. Those huge riffs are the reason these boys are one of the hottest indie bands now. Guaranteed moshpit central all festival season. Crank it up, it’s a banger.
Lady Messiah is a shimmering, bright and blissful track about “a woman in your life who you idolise. Someone you look up to and cherish, whether it’s your Mum, Sister, Daughter, Auntie, Elder or even next-door neighbour - the song connects with every woman that has been there in our lives, past, or present.” In keeping with Corella’s signature style, this tune introduces elements of folk and jangly guitar work with a beautiful result.
If you managed to get tickets to their sold-out tour at the end of last year, you may have heard Lady Messiah being road-tested. Or in Nottingham’s case, you may have sung it back filling in for the band as they battled audio troubles.
Hometown, on the other hand, is the ballad of the record. The change in pace gives Joel a chance to flex his vocal prowess and us a moment to dig into our feels (and catch our breath). It’s a song derived from memories, and feeling homesick. Wherever we may end up, there’s always somewhere we came from, that’ll remain home. Fade Into You comes to mind as the biggest influence, but we love it all the same. Translating this to a live setting is going to involve a lot of phone torches, just wait and see.
Picking up the rhythm again, I Didn’t Know Your Name falls in line with previous tracks Let Me Go and Drifting. A relatable heartbreak anthem tied up within indie pop, longing for a time before things got so complicated.
‘Now I can’t listen to the radio,
And you’ve ruined every TV show
That we laughed at,
Or we sang to when we’re drunk
I promise you this, our love is frozen
And the world don’t spin when I’m not here with you.
I’ll figure it out, I’ll mend what is broken,
And If only we could start it back to when,
I didn’t know your name’
Tracks like this are a testament to Corella’s knack for simplistic and observational storytelling while ensuring there’s a big enough hook to keep you singing.
Tommy Loser comes next, detailing a fictitious character who seemingly epitomises everything bad with your 20s. Like early 00’s indie, the track’s narrative is made up using the power of lists and in a similar vein to previously, observational lyricism. What makes Tommy so clever is normality. The mockery of his personality lives inside all of us in our early adulthood; lying about our age, shouting about girls and never quite fitting in. And by projecting onto Tommy, who is more alike than we think, we avoid addressing our inner confusion.
Say You Wanna opens the dancefloor with funky guitar riffs and glamorous drumbeats, reminiscent of early The 1975. One of the most straightforward tunes across the 11, it finds a place paying homage to Manchester bands.
The penultimate track, Laidback, questions the reality of your new surroundings as an adult. Addressing the thoughts of others, mundane daily chores and trying to retain your spirit in an otherwise complex world. In classic Corella style, the answer is to simply chill - because it’s life.
Rock The Boat, the album closer, is also the longest. Combining every sound, theme and story, it throws you into an epic finale demanding you ‘Get off your own and rock my boat’. The four-piece become unleashed, giving everything they have for one final tune. This is unequivocally Corella at their best and gives a glimpse into a bigger sound to come next.
:: Round-Up ::
Once Upon A Weekend is an indie record that’ll stand the test of time, and only grow in popularity. An album that’ll soundtrack your favourite of Summers and darkest of Winters, there’s a song on here for everyone.
To make a debut that has you grasping for another spin, it has to welcome relatability, inventive hooks and remain focused in its efforts to capture your attention. Corella’s long-anticipated record does all of that and more.
Welcome to Club Corella, you won’t be leaving anytime soon.
Catch the band on their biggest headline tour to date before it sells out or spot them at festivals this Summer. You can also check out their store for exclusive coloured vinyl to support the band reaching no.1 in the album charts.
Now, it’s your turn. Give it a spin, and tell us what you think on Insta or X.
Rating: 8/10
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