Released: August 16
Since the untimely death of guitarist Mark Sheehan in April 2023, life for The Script has been a rollercoaster ride of grief, uncertainty and banding together to continue the legacy he and frontman Danny O’Donoghue started 25 years ago.
If their 2022 ‘Greatest Hits’ LP marked the closing of the band’s first chapter, ‘Satellites’ is the dawning of a new era that sees the singer-songwriter and drummer Glen Power joined by Benjamin Sargent (bass) and Ben Weaver (guitar) in a new look line-up that lays the foundations for the future.
Lead single Better Days upheld that viewpoint, with a lyric that celebrates living in the here and now, and making memories for one’s future self, with the stadium-sized anthem signposting a band that has no intention of slowing down.
This time around, the group let loose in the studio and experimented in a number of ways, using 808s and playing with R&B-inspired sounds, with a focus on upbeats sonics that brought out the pop thread that’s always been a consistent undercurrent in The Script’s material.
The handclap-heavy Unsaid has echoes of Justin Timberlake, while Falling Flying is evocative of driving down the highway with the top down and Run Run Run a pop-punk ode to the group’s collective history and shared experiences together.
With an overarching sense of optimism, ‘Satellites’ is underpinned by a deep personal thread that cuts through O’Donoghue’s lyrics and taps into the core of the artist as he finds himself today. There are, of course, nods to Sheehan; most notably on Gone, he sings of one day reuniting with his late friend: ‘I like to think you finally found some peace / And wherever you are just save a sеat for me’.
The introspective Inside Out sees him reflect on his mental health and struggles with ‘depression and anxieties’, while musing on cultural and political issues that frame everyday life: ‘Bad news in social media that triggers OCD / Can’t concentrate on anything, my heart’s ADHD’. Meanwhile, the slow-burning soft-rock single At Your Feet is an early highlight on the LP that’s reminiscent of their best-loved material and captures the essence of the band’s early records.
Notable is the dichotomy between the ‘new Script’-style production that features across much of the record and the more stripped-back moments on ‘Satellites’ that invariably see O’Donoghue navigating the position in which he found himself while writing and recording the album. It’s a striking approach that sees the group working towards a new future while keeping one foot in the past and Sheehan at the heart of the project.
Rewind 12 months and, for a brief moment, it seemed like The Script could be over forever, so it’s a testament to both founders and their commitment and passion for music that they continued forward with this record. What’s an even greater achievement is that O’Donoghue and co. have channeled a plethora of emotions into a body of work that represents not only The Script’s shared history, but the thoughts, feelings and emotions of the group as they celebrate the past and step into a new future.
