For the first time since 2017, legendary rock band Blondie returned with new music last week with “Spectral Eyes.”
The song is the first single from an album, “High Noon,” set to be released on Feb. 26, 2027.
A collaboration with former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr, who wrote the song and contributed on guitar, the song also features Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock. Matlock has been a touring member of the group since 2022.
Despite the star-studded lineup, it is Blondie drummer Clem Burke’s performance that immediately stands out.
One of the final recordings of Burke’s career before the drummer died from cancer in 2025 at 70 years old, Burke’s driving drum beat powers the track throughout. Burke has the unmistakable sound that the best drummers are capable of.
The syncopated bass drum rhythm and occasional double backbeat is reminiscent of “Sunday Girl” and “Hanging on the Telephone,” both from Blondie’s 1978 album, “Parallel Lines.”
The intro to the song is also similar to the bridge of “Sunday Girl,” which, in addition to Burke’s drumming, immediately gives the song a classic Blondie feel.
Being centered on an ascending guitar riff, the composition of the track matches the same approach of some of Blondie’s upbeat hits, such as “Dreaming” and “Atomic.”
While it is not exactly in line with the powerful riffs provided by Chris Stein and Frank Infante that defined their heyday or even songs like “Maria” from their first comeback in the late ‘90s (when Infante was already out of the group), “Spectral Eyes” relies on the guitars to set a foundation for the synths.
One of the aspects that makes “Spectral Eyes” feel timeless is Debbie Harry’s voice. While the 81-year-old lead singer obviously sounds different than she did in the ‘80s, very minimal vocal production is needed on the track to make Harry sound strong. Instead, the slight raspiness of her voice is embraced and adds more character to the song.
One criticism of the song is that it may run a bit long for some. For a song that sounds mostly the same throughout, it does not introduce enough new components to stay fresh over its more than four-minute run time.
Still, the song harkens back to the Blondie of old and was a good pick to create excitement for the new album. The way the song fades at the end and begins to drop in pitch teases that it could potentially lead straight into another, one which I’m excited to hear.
Rating: 4.2/5