{"id":1919165,"date":"2026-05-05T08:00:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T05:00:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1919165"},"modified":"2026-05-05T08:00:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T05:00:26","slug":"muna-dancing-on-the-wall-review-euphoric-pop-bangers-with-a-shadowy-side","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1919165","title":{"rendered":"MUNA \u2013 \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 review: euphoric pop bangers with a shadowy side"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/MUNADancingOnTheWall-album-single-announcement.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article id=\"template-id-3332206\" class=\"post-3332206 tdb_templates type-tdb_templates status-publish post\">\n<div id=\"tdi_65\" class=\"tdc-zone\">\n<div class=\"tdc_zone tdi_66  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div id=\"tdi_67\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row_1400 td-stretch-content\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_68  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_70  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_featured_image tdi_71 tdb-content-horiz-left td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_71\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"696\" height=\"442\" class=\"entry-thumb\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/MUNADancingOnTheWall-album-single-announcement-696x442.jpg\" alt=\"MUNA, photo by Dean Bradshaw\" title=\"MUNADancingOnTheWall-album-single-announcement\"><figcaption class=\"tdb-caption-text\">MUNA. CREDIT: Dean Bradshaw<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_72\" class=\"tdc-row stretch_row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_73  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_75  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_breadcrumbs tdi_76 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-breadcrumbs \" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_76\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span>Reviews<\/span><span>Album Reviews<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_title tdi_77 tdb-single-title td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_77\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">MUNA \u2013 \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 review: euphoric pop bangers with a shadowy side<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_subtitle tdi_78 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_78\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>On their fourth album, the Los Angeles trio balance lightness and lust with a creeping sense of dread<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_review_overall tdi_79 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_79\">\n<table class=\"td-review td-fix-index\">\n<tr class=\"td-review-footer rate_stars\">\n<td class=\"td-review-score\">\n<div class=\"td-review-overall\">\n<div class=\"td-review-final-score\">3.5<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_author tdi_80 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_80\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-author-name-wrap\"><span class=\"tdb-author-by\">By<\/span> El Hunt<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_date tdi_81 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 tdb-post-meta\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_81\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><time class=\"entry-date updated td-module-date\" datetime=\"2026-05-05T09:00:26+01:00\">5th May 2026<\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_82\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_83  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_85  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>MUNA have always been excellent at nailing light and dark; while the Los Angeles trio\u2019s biggest song is the deliciously featherweight infatuation of \u2018Silk Chiffon\u2019, their finest work centres on broken hearts, uncomfortable tensions or dark, destructive shadows lingering just out of frame. One of MUNA\u2019s best, 2017\u2019s \u2018I Know A Place\u2019, was written following the previous year\u2019s Pulse nightclub shooting, and feels fragile and under threat even as it celebrates the safety and euphoria of queer spaces. And lord help anybody masochistic enough to listen to \u2018Stayaway\u2019 while weathering a break-up: <i>\u201cNo one ever told me leaving was the easy part,\u201d<\/i> lead vocalist Katie Gavin sings. <i>\u201cI\u2019ve gotta stay away.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>READ MORE: On \u2018The Afterparty\u2019, Lykke Li is sticking two fingers up to traditional pop trajectories<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The band\u2019s fourth album \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 \u2013 produced by MUNA\u2019s very own Naomi McPherson \u2013 may conjure up plenty of euphoria, but it is also a product of the divisive, deeply fractured political times it arrives in. Both lyrically and musically, it is spikier and more restless than their previous work, drawing on flickers of glam rock and alternative indie alongside the much more familiar territory of saturated \u201980s synthpop.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Even when it seems carefree, something ominous often lingers just out of shot \u2013 while \u2018It Gets So Hot\u2019 initially feels like it centres on all-consuming lust, the heat of Los Angeles is claustrophobic, humid and oppressive. Bouncy and upbeat, \u2018Mary Jane\u2019 alludes to a relationship wrecked by substance dependency. And the deliciously delusional \u2018So What\u2019 does its best to conceal its heartbreak behind free drinks at bougie parties, even if Gavin\u2019s defences are soon shattered by the hollowness of it all. <i>\u201cThe reviews that came in, the fangirls and harshest critics, are all in agreement,\u201d<\/i> she boasts of all the strangers who claim to love her, without really knowing her at all. <i>\u201cIt\u2019s our best work without you in it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"MUNA - Wannabeher (Official Video)\" width=\"696\" height=\"522\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/eWE5SIjY99k?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>At times, this is also the trio\u2019s most overtly political work, not just dancing around the state of the world but spelling it out explicitly. With \u2018Big Stick\u2019, we meet an anonymous, suburb-dwelling mom who steadily accrues wealth and unquestioningly pays taxes to a war-waging machine in the hope of an easy, quiet life. Gavin\u2019s chorus plays the part of a Big Brother-esque dystopian figure keeping things calm on the airwaves, but by the bridge, the rug has been pulled. <i>\u201cAmerica gives more than America takes \/ We give weapons to dictators in apartheid states,\u201d<\/i> she chants, <i>\u201cWe give kids in Palestine PTSD \/ But we\u2019ll never fucking ever give them something to eat.\u201d<\/i> Gavin\u2019s words are so blunt that it sadly feels refreshing, in a realm where few other pop artists are addressing a genocide this overtly.<\/p>\n<p>While \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 does tread newer ground lyrically on songs like \u2018Big Stick\u2019, and at times dabbles with heavier, rock-influenced sounds, it also doesn\u2019t divert too far away from the hyper-saturated synthpop sound the band have nailed since day one. And in MUNA\u2019s world, precise, irresistible consistency can be just as compelling as constant reinvention.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Details<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3782516 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/muna-dancing-on-the-wall.jpg\" alt=\"muna dancing on the wall review\" width=\"400\" height=\"400\"><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Record label:<\/strong> Saddest Factory<\/li>\n<li><strong>Release date:<\/strong> May 8, 2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_tags tdi_87 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_87\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<ul class=\"tdb-tags\">\n<li><span>Related Topics<\/span><\/li>\n<li>Alternative<\/li>\n<li>Indie<\/li>\n<li>MUNA<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_88\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_89  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_91  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"vc_row_inner tdi_93  vc_row vc_inner wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column_inner tdi_95  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-inner-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"vc_column-inner\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_97 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>More Stories<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap td_flex_block_1 tdi_98 td-pb-border-top td_module_flex_1--card td_module_flex_1--card--highlight td_block_template_2 tdc-no-posts td_flex_block\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_98\">\n<div id=\"tdi_98\" class=\"td_block_inner td-mc1-wrap\">\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">The Enemy announce 2027 Coventry arena show to mark 20 years of \u2018We\u2019ll Live And Die In These Towns\u2019<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Mitski reveals why she won\u2019t be doing a \u201cproper tour\u201d<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Rostam says Zohran Mamdani\u2019s election marked an \u201cexpansion\u201d in \u201cAmerican leadership\u201d<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Watch Olivia Dean and Sam Fender celebrate nine weeks at UK Number One with surprise live performance of \u2018Rein Me In\u2019<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">The Guest List announce debut album \u2018Something Real\u2019 with emotive single \u2018You Should Care\u2019<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"td_module_flex td_module_flex_1 td_module_wrap td-animation-stack\">\n<div class=\"td-module-container td-category-pos-above\">\n<div class=\"td-module-meta-info\">\n                    Music News<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"entry-title td-module-title\">Pulp\u2019s Jarvis Cocker to curate new art exhibition at Hepworth Wakefield with wife Kim Sion<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tdi_99\" class=\"tdc-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_row tdi_100  wpb_row td-pb-row\">\n<div class=\"vc_column tdi_102  wpb_column vc_column_container tdc-column td-pb-span12\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wpb_wrapper td_block_wrap vc_raw_html tdi_104 \">\n<div class=\"td-fix-index\">\n<h3>You May Also Like<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><span><\/span><\/span><span class=\"td-page-meta\"><\/span><\/article>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"td_block_wrap tdb_single_content tdi_86 td-pb-border-top td_block_template_2 td-post-content tagdiv-type\" data-td-block-uid=\"tdi_86\">\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<p>MUNA have always been excellent at nailing light and dark; while the Los Angeles trio\u2019s biggest song is the deliciously featherweight infatuation of \u2018Silk Chiffon\u2019, their finest work centres on broken hearts, uncomfortable tensions or dark, destructive shadows lingering just out of frame. One of MUNA\u2019s best, 2017\u2019s \u2018I Know A Place\u2019, was written following the previous year\u2019s Pulse nightclub shooting, and feels fragile and under threat even as it celebrates the safety and euphoria of queer spaces. And lord help anybody masochistic enough to listen to \u2018Stayaway\u2019 while weathering a break-up: <i>\u201cNo one ever told me leaving was the easy part,\u201d<\/i> lead vocalist Katie Gavin sings. <i>\u201cI\u2019ve gotta stay away.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>READ MORE: On \u2018The Afterparty\u2019, Lykke Li is sticking two fingers up to traditional pop trajectories<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The band\u2019s fourth album \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 \u2013 produced by MUNA\u2019s very own Naomi McPherson \u2013 may conjure up plenty of euphoria, but it is also a product of the divisive, deeply fractured political times it arrives in. Both lyrically and musically, it is spikier and more restless than their previous work, drawing on flickers of glam rock and alternative indie alongside the much more familiar territory of saturated \u201980s synthpop.<\/p>\n<div class=\"td-a-ad id_inline_ad0 id_ad_content-horiz-center\"><span class=\"td-adspot-title\">Advertisement<\/span><\/div>\n<p>Even when it seems carefree, something ominous often lingers just out of shot \u2013 while \u2018It Gets So Hot\u2019 initially feels like it centres on all-consuming lust, the heat of Los Angeles is claustrophobic, humid and oppressive. Bouncy and upbeat, \u2018Mary Jane\u2019 alludes to a relationship wrecked by substance dependency. And the deliciously delusional \u2018So What\u2019 does its best to conceal its heartbreak behind free drinks at bougie parties, even if Gavin\u2019s defences are soon shattered by the hollowness of it all. <i>\u201cThe reviews that came in, the fangirls and harshest critics, are all in agreement,\u201d<\/i> she boasts of all the strangers who claim to love her, without really knowing her at all. <i>\u201cIt\u2019s our best work without you in it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"MUNA - Wannabeher (Official Video)\" width=\"696\" height=\"522\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/eWE5SIjY99k?feature=oembed&amp;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>At times, this is also the trio\u2019s most overtly political work, not just dancing around the state of the world but spelling it out explicitly. With \u2018Big Stick\u2019, we meet an anonymous, suburb-dwelling mom who steadily accrues wealth and unquestioningly pays taxes to a war-waging machine in the hope of an easy, quiet life. Gavin\u2019s chorus plays the part of a Big Brother-esque dystopian figure keeping things calm on the airwaves, but by the bridge, the rug has been pulled. <i>\u201cAmerica gives more than America takes \/ We give weapons to dictators in apartheid states,\u201d<\/i> she chants, <i>\u201cWe give kids in Palestine PTSD \/ But we\u2019ll never fucking ever give them something to eat.\u201d<\/i> Gavin\u2019s words are so blunt that it sadly feels refreshing, in a realm where few other pop artists are addressing a genocide this overtly.<\/p>\n<p>While \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 does tread newer ground lyrically on songs like \u2018Big Stick\u2019, and at times dabbles with heavier, rock-influenced sounds, it also doesn\u2019t divert too far away from the hyper-saturated synthpop sound the band have nailed since day one. And in MUNA\u2019s world, precise, irresistible consistency can be just as compelling as constant reinvention.<\/p>\n<h3><strong>Details<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-3782516 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/muna-dancing-on-the-wall.jpg\" alt=\"muna dancing on the wall review\" width=\"400\" height=\"400\"><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Record label:<\/strong> Saddest Factory<\/li>\n<li><strong>Release date:<\/strong> May 8, 2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/reviews\/album\/muna-dancing-on-the-wall-review-3944066&#8243;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/www.nme.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/MUNADancingOnTheWall-album-single-announcement.jpg&#8221;] MUNA. CREDIT: Dean Bradshaw ReviewsAlbum Reviews MUNA \u2013 \u2018Dancing On The Wall\u2019 review: euphoric pop bangers with a shadowy side On their fourth album, the Los Angeles trio balance lightness and lust with a creeping sense of dread 3.5 By El Hunt 5th May 2026 MUNA have always been excellent at nailing [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,78],"class_list":["post-1919165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nme-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1919165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1919165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1919165\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1919165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1919165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1919165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}