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Photo by Charles Gall

There is a very specific kind of album that makes you think, “I get it.” You understand what the band is going for, you can hear the work that went into it, and you might even have a great time while it’s playing. Then it ends, and you realize you’re not entirely sure what, exactly, you’re supposed to take with you.

Corella’s A Beautiful World To Lose is different. It is the kind of record that leaves you with something to think about, even after the guitars fade out.

Two years after their debut, Once Upon A Weekend, the Manchester four-piece return with a record that is bigger, louder, and noticeably more mature. Loss, heartbreak, frustration, ambition, and disillusionment all make their way into the album, reflecting the messiness of growing up and the strange experience of trying to build a life while having very little control over what happens around you. And musically, Corella have absolutely put the work in.

Produced by GRAMMY-winning Jason Perry, A Beautiful World To Lose sounds polished without losing the muscle that makes a rock record satisfying. The guitars are thick and driven, the drums keep everything moving, and the bass gives the album much of its momentum. “Simple Life” is a particularly good example, pairing its easygoing groove with a reminder that happiness does not always have to be complicated.

The album opens with “Rewire,” immediately throwing you into the deep end with searing guitars and a high-octane rhythm. “Bitter End” turns ambition into something larger than life, embracing the desire to succeed with references to the American dream and “calling the shots.” “What’s The Use” then pauses to question whether chasing success is actually worth it, while “Simple Life” offers a quieter alternative: chase sunsets, swim in the sea, make a meal, tell your mother you love her.

Together, these songs capture one of the album’s most compelling ideas: wanting more from life while learning that more is not necessarily the same thing as better.

There is a reason Corella’s music feels made for a festival stage. They know how to make a song feel huge. “All I Want” builds toward a spiralling guitar solo, “Jump Scare” brings soaring synths and harmonies into the mix, and “Thunder Strike” adds some welcome chaos through its collaboration with Circa Waves frontman Kieran Shudall.

The songwriting is just as thoughtful. “All I Want” takes the familiar subject of heartbreak and fills it with small, lived-in details: a cold July morning, an old partner moving back home, hearing about their new job and remembering a summer spent near the lakes. “Lost A Friend” finds beauty in the world continuing around you even while grief makes it difficult to participate in it.

Throughout the record, there is a balance that runs between the personal and the universal. Corella are writing about things that almost everyone experiences, but they approach them with enough energy and sincerity to make them feel immediate. “Note To Self” closes the album on a more intimate note, trading some of the record’s grandiosity for a tangled confession about wanting something you cannot have.

What makes A Beautiful World To Lose work is that Corella never seem afraid to go big. The production is polished, the choruses are enormous, and the guitars are constantly pushing forward, but there is a genuine curiosity underneath all of it. These are songs about figuring things out, making mistakes, wanting too much, losing people, and trying to find your way forward anyway.

Corella have clearly grown since Once Upon A Weekend, and this album feels like a band becoming more comfortable with what they want to say. A Beautiful World To Lose is ambitious, energetic, and full of heart, a record that understands that growing up is rarely about finding all the answers. Sometimes, it is just about being willing to keep moving.

Listen to  A Beautiful World To Lose below: