Arkells: Between Us

Arkells' Between Us

Jade Read

President / Editor-In-Chief

April 22, 2026

Coming up on 20 years as a band, Between Us seems to be one of Arkells’ most complete albums, shifting between styles whilst staying consistent to their upbeat indie pop sound.

Something that stands out especially on this album is the production, they have left room for their sound to be pulled forward and show the best of what each member has to offer.

"Next Summer" starts with a strong intro into the album and is by far the most lyrically strong on the album, the song serves as a reflection on different periods of life and how things change in the blink of an eye from summer to summer. Heading into a less existential route, "What Good?" talks more as a critique on modern life and how we should prioritize authentic connection over the noise of the media and digital age. As we progress through the album the songs start to shift, “Ride” is a collaboration with GROUPLOVE, it’s the most energetic song on the album and is a great sense of difference with the rest of the album. Adding more to the collabs on this album, "Money" sees a relatively surprising feature from Portugal. The Man, in both collabs it seems as Arkells is adapting to their collaborators’ style and really creating something new. "Imagine Barcelona" is a surreal take on relationships and romanticizing even the slightest of situations, a song that adds as a great addition to the album.

The album slows down with "Desires Got Some Questions", an existential song about some questions we are asked by life and forced to figure out alone. Moving into a twangier sound, "Universe Talking" is a lot more stripped down compared to the rest of the album, and a mellow break from the fast-paced movement of the other songs. Back into the high-energy sound, "Two Hearts" has a fast, memorable guitar riff along with fitting lyrics and melody to ultimately create what we consider the strongest song on the album. From the verse, to the chorus, to the bridge, "Two Hearts" is a song that perfectly explains this album and what it is meant to be. Moving over to "What’s on Your Mind" gives us another one of those adapting collaborations, this time with Poolside, where Arkells leans into Poolside’s electronic groove more than anything else on the album.

The last two songs end with the classic Arkells sound on "Rumour" and "Escape Door", two songs that seem perfectly pulled from Max Kerman’s mind and put into song. "Escape Door" is especially interesting through its lyrics and yearning identity. Both strong tracks to end a solid album and release by Arkells.

Sonder rates Between Us a 7/10