If you needed yet more proof that time really is flying by faster and faster, it’s been more than a decade since Alabama Shakes released their last album ‘Sound & Color,’ all the way back in 2015— we’ve had solo projects from Brittany Howard since then, sure, but it’s 2026 that finally sees the band reuniting for another round of soulful rock music. ‘I Must Be Dreaming’ is probably their most psychedelic effort yet: if anything, the actual songs have gotten lost in the shuffle.

For any listeners who know Alabama Shakes for their hit song ‘Hold On,’ the skulking grooves of ‘Tea Time’ will come as quite the shock. ‘I Must Be Dreaming’ has its more raucous and energetic moments, but they’re peppered throughout a record more devoted to atmosphere and to serenity than anything else: this is an album you’re supposed to float through, which goes some degree towards explaining its title. That opening track is a particularly free-form offering from Alabama Shakes, collecting a host of clattering guitar accompaniments and soothing keyboards to soundtrack Howard’s poetry, but it nonetheless lays the groundwork for the experience to follow. The likes of ‘Easy,’ ‘Time’ and ‘Tied To You’ all come together as some of the most relaxing material the group have ever penned.

Our problem here is two-fold, with the most prominent issue being that Alabama Shakes’ approach to this laid-back material is far too tepid for a self-described ‘rock powerhouse’— many of these songs are pleasant enough, but not much more. ‘Friends’ is probably the best example of filler within this tracklist, filling itself with underwhelming vocal takes and banal guitar accompaniments undeserving of Howard and company’s name, and you could levy similar criticisms against many of the aforementioned soulful tunes across the album. ‘I Must Be Dreaming’ cloaks itself in a syrupy presentation that does no favours to its incredibly basic drumming (no doubt as a result of Steve Johnson’s departure from the band a few years back) or to its lead performers. Brittany Howard has never sounded so unenthused as this, a project that woefully underutilises her phenomenal voice.

In an ironic twist, this utterly soothing collection of tracks winds up becoming somewhat frustrating when Alabama Shakes continually tease an intensity, a fire within them that never really lets loose: the heavily distorted guitars that show up towards the end of ‘Waist Deep,’ for instance, are a nice touch, but even they end up settling into an arrangement more charming than it is actually interesting. In amongst a sea of easy-going numbers in the second half of the album, it’s incredible to hear just how quickly the rambunctious bass lines and the urgent writing of ‘How’s Love Supposed To Go’ will prick your ears up, even if this is another tune spoiled in post. It’s simply disappointing to see this band, who clearly have so much to say on a cut like ‘American Dream,’ reining in the impulses that made them successful in the first place.

Thank the gods for the album’s first half then, which brings with it just enough energy and passion to justify those wistful guitar parts and crooned vocals: again, the issue is not the approach Alabama Shakes have taken this time around, but the plainness of its results. ‘Another Life’ is an easy standout to highlight, letting Brittany Howard off the chain to fill that anthemic chorus with untold amounts of yearning and soul— her voice has always been a critical cornerstone of the band’s sound, making it no surprise that the gorgeous melodies of ‘I Feel Hope Coming’ will stick with you long after ‘Tied To You’ has faded from memory. There is still a beige quality to songs like ‘Garden’ and ‘Time,’ save for the outro on the latter, but these tracks manage to escape the mundanity of their peers. That’s really all we were looking for.

‘I Must Be Dreaming’ keeps on hinting to its audience that Alabama Shakes might let loose at some point, but they very rarely do: it’s almost unfair to put the vibrant ‘Another Life’ so early in the tracklist, only to hit the brakes from that point on. You can certainly fall into a cut like ‘Time,’ but these songs wind up being more serviceable than genuinely enthralling. The band are much more characterful than this crop of tracks suggests.