Alabama Shakes "I Must Be Dreaming"

Eleven years after Sound & Color, Alabama Shakes could simply have repeated the formula behind their success: a powerful voice, rugged guitars and soul drawn directly from the American South. Instead, the band chooses to look ahead, attempting to lay the foundations for a modern form of soul, even at the risk of losing listeners who expected something more immediate.

On I Must Be Dreaming, soul remains the foundation, but it blends with R&B, gospel, pop and psychedelic rock. The flutes on Tea Time quickly establish this sense of freedom. Another Life moves from hazy R&B into broader rock territory, while Garden embraces a soft, muted atmosphere. I Feel Hope Coming recaptures the warmth of Curtis Mayfield, and Time carries echoes of Sam Cooke before taking off on a long journey into Pink Floyd territory.

Heath Fogg’s guitar plays an essential role in this evolution. Fuzz-heavy and loaded with saturation and feedback, it disrupts even the gentlest arrangements. It adds particular depth to How Love’s Supposed to Go and Waist Deep, whose ascending piano also evokes the Beatles and George Harrison.

At the centre of it all, Brittany Howard’s voice continues to hold everything together. By turns tender, deep and explosive, it connects these many influences without making the album feel like a mere stylistic exercise. The gospel fervour of American Dream also confirms that the band has lost none of its power.

Yet this abundance eventually becomes tiring. The fuzz guitar, striking at first, soon becomes systematic. The echoes and effects applied to Brittany Howard’s voice sometimes diminish its natural force. Across 48 minutes, the dense production gives a uniform quality to songs that are nevertheless rich in ideas. Friends, Easy and Tied to You, in particular, would have benefited from a more direct and stripped-back approach.

Less immediate than Boys & Girls, I Must Be Dreaming gradually reveals itself. Alabama Shakes are not trying to revive the soul music of the past: they offer a modern, ambitious interpretation, open to a wide range of influences. A convincing evolution, despite a few overlong passages and a tendency to become overwhelmed by its own effects.

Album details

ARTIST: Alabama Shakes
ALBUM: I Must Be Dreaming
LABEL: Limestone Listening Club / Island Records
RELEASE DATE: August 28, 2026
RUNNING TIME: 48 min 05 sec
PRODUCTION: Alabama Shakes and Shawn Everett
RECORDED AT: Sound Emporium Studios and Blackbird Studio, Nashville
MIXING: Shawn Everett
MASTERING: Patricia Sullivan
SONGWRITING: Brittany Howard, Heath Fogg and Zac Cockrell. Tea Time was also co-written by Paul Horton.

MUSICIANS:

Brittany Howard: vocals, guitar
Heath Fogg: guitar, backing vocals on tracks 3–5, 8, 9 and 11
Zac Cockrell: bass, keyboards on tracks 2 and 10, drums on track 3, backing vocals on tracks 3–5, 8, 9 and 11
Lewis Wright: drums on tracks 1–3, 10 and 11, percussion, shaker, celesta, congas, glockenspiel, tambourine and vibraphone
Noah Bond: drums on tracks 4–9, percussion on track 4
Lloyd Buchanan: keyboards on tracks 1–3 and 10
Paul Horton: keyboards on tracks 1, 2, 6, 8 and 11
Ben Tanner: keyboards on tracks 4–9

TRACKLIST: 1/ Tea Time (3:46), 2/ Another Life (4:35), 3/ Garden (4:59), 4/ I Feel Hope Coming (5:11), 5/ Time (4:58), 6/ Friends (3:07), 7/ Easy (4:15), 8/ How Love’s Supposed to Go (3:36), 9/ Waist Deep (4:31), 10/ American Dream (4:27), 11/ Tied to You (4:40).