Possible Humans: Standing Around Alive [Album Review]

Possible Humans
Standing Around Alive
Hobbies Galore [2025]

“Standing Around Alive captures the sweet spot between drive and reflection—an indie triumph in full stride.”

Album Overview: Possible Humans, the Melbourne indie rock outfit behind 2019’s underground gem Everybody Split, have returned with a stunner. That debut’s tangled guitars and raw emotion earned them cult status across Australia’s DIY scene and beyond. On Standing Around Alive, they pick up right where they left off—only sharper, tighter, and more confident.

Dropped without much fanfare and total surprise, this sophomore release feels like the work of a band fully in control. Every riff, harmony, and rhythmic shift lands with purpose, building songs that shimmer on the surface yet reveal deeper layers with each listen. It’s melodic, reflective, and beautifully cohesive—the kind of record that flows naturally from start to finish. Standing Around Alive proves Possible Humans have found their stride.

Musical Style: Their sound is built on crisp, intertwining guitars and unshakable rhythmic chemistry. The interplay feels effortless—precise yet loose enough to breathe—while the bass adds its own melodic counterpoint. The result sits somewhere between jangly indie pop and grounded post-punk, brimming with energy but never forced. Whether it’s a quicker three-minute rush or an almost eight-minute sprawl, every song lands—the band knows exactly how long each moment needs to breathe. It’s that sweet spot where warmth meets tension, and everything just clicks.

Evolution of Sound: Compared to Everybody Split, this record sounds even more focused and assured. The production is richer, the pacing more deliberate, and the performances leaner. Five years on, Possible Humans have learned restraint without losing spark. Their songwriting feels lived-in, their arrangements purposeful. They’ve distilled their early chaos into clarity—still alive with urgency, but now glowing with maturity.

Artists with Similar Fire: Think early R.E.M., The Feelies, and The Bats—bands that knew how to make guitars chime and hearts ache in the same breath. There’s also a streak of Guided By Voices in their melodic punch, and a more straightforward indie rock with Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, You Am I, The Tubs, and Real Estate in their sun-worn coastal tones. At times, their intensity channels Fontaines D.C.’s post-punk grit. And underneath it all, there’s a flicker of Midnight Oil—a distinctly Australian undercurrent that gives their urgency weight and purpose.

Pivotal Tracks: “Slouching Hat” kicks things off with sharp guitar interplay and tightly wound energy—a perfect reintroduction to the band’s kinetic world. “Ordinary Agony” follows with one of the album’s most affecting moments, threading melancholy through bright chords and a hypnotic pulse that feels universally relatable. “Dream of Time,” stretching almost eight minutes, unfolds like a slow-burn revelation—more instrumental than lyrical, its rising tide of guitars mirrors the album’s quiet endurance. And closer “Akimbo” hits the sweet spot between muscle and melody, letting the vocals steer while the band brings it home with restrained power.

Lyrical Strength: The lyrics trade in fragments and fleeting images—less diary, more daydream. Themes of time, distance, and reflection surface throughout, delivered with understated emotion. The band doesn’t spell things out; instead, they leave room for the listener to step inside. It’s that open-ended honesty—measured but resonant—that makes the words linger long after the songs fade.

Final Groove: Standing Around Alive is one of those rare second albums that deepens everything that came before it. It’s reflective without losing its spark, thoughtful without dulling the edge. Possible Humans sound like a band growing comfortably into themselves—confident enough to slow down, stretch out, and trust the space between notes. If Everybody Split was their promise, Standing Around Alive is the proof. And if this is where they’ve arrived after five years, it’s thrilling to imagine where they’ll go next.

POSSIBLE HUMANS REVIEW HISTORY
Everybody Split (1999)

POSSIBLE HUMANS LINKS
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