(Elisa Bray)Six months after the release of Oxnard, Anderson .Paak returns with another Dr Dre-produced record, Ventura. try again, the name must be uniquePlease Take the title track, whose spoken-word monologue morphs into a recorded conversation in which a woman discusses how childlessness in her late thirties affects her place in society, over the sparsest electronica. The euphoric, Eighties synth-laden “Want You in My Room” is most distinctive, both vocally and melodically, and was co-written and produced by Jack Antonoff, indie tunesmith for fun. “Something magical happened one night,” she sings. The way she has structured this record takes the listener through the complicated yet nuanced emotions of a woman who has recently learnt to accept everything she feels. (Helen Brown)The perma-brilliant James Blake has flooded his fourth album – Assume Form – with euphoric sepia soul and loved-up doo-wop.
Yet neither can claim to be as fiendishly catchy as Let’s Rock, a record that can scarcely sit still. There are great ways that tennis becomes a sport for life. A cornucopia of instrumentation is woven into its brisk 42-minute yarn. (Mark Beaumont)A revolving door of female vocalists (A-listers, indie darlings like Angel Olsen and unsung songwriters) deliver heartbroken lines over big, shiny beats and synths. It is a sport that is built on respect—respect for one another, and for the game itself. Closer “I Don’t Know What to Say” is cinematic in its symphonic drama – perhaps inspired by their 2016 shows at the Royal Albert Hall that featured a full orchestra and choir – and becomes the album’s most moving song. The Sun Will Come Up, the Seasons Will Change has slick, polished production from Fraser T Smith (Adele), Lostboy (Anne-Marie), Jordan Riley (Zara Larsson), and Nesbitt herself.
Instead, she’s been busy honing her craft for Grey Area, which sees her land on a new, bolder sound assisted by her childhood friend – the producer Inflo [Michael Kiwanuka’s Love & Hate] – for a record that incorporates her dextrous flow and superb wordplay with an eclectic range of influences.
It’s layered with whimsical flutes, intricate guitar picking and sombre bass lines that meander with casual abandon. Atlantic Records/Twitter (Mark Beaumont)A revolving door of female vocalists (A-listers, indie darlings like Angel Olsen and unsung songwriters) deliver heartbroken lines over big, shiny beats and synths. Instead, his cold grime sonics are rendered down to their no-frills essentials – brutalist blocks of sad angular melodies and hard, spacious drums. (Roisin O'Connor)There’s more of a soul influence here – “HER Love”, the counterpoint to his 1994 track “I Used to Love HER”, benefits from the gospel-like vocals of Daniel Caesar and Dwele, while “Memories of Home” skitters over a muffled bass and Common’s recollections of his past – including an incident where he was molested by a family member. And if any two records could portray how quickly someone can grow from a boy to a man, it’s these. “Something magical happened one night,” she sings. Addressing a younger version of herself, the 37-year-old sings of the carefree young and their mistrust of those defeated by time. But this is an album that shows a band who’ve grown stronger and unafraid to flex their muscle.
Over urgent, darting violin notes and soft strumming on an acoustic guitar, Sykes sings about the loss of a close friend, building to a hair-raising climax where he screams out the song’s title one last time. Slide guitars give way to violas, which usher in eerie synths. (Alex Pollard)It’s not uncommon for an artist to be influenced by the place they grew up in.
Several tracks tap into a Nineties R&B sound that UK women, from Mabel to Ella Mai, are excelling at right now. Hopefully fans will, too. Charli’s always so much cooler when she swaps the people-pleasing nostalgic for the free-wheeling futuristic. As if to hammer home their parity, they even largely sing in unison – which might have had a plodding effect if the pair’s voices weren’t so distinct: Bridgers sings with a hazy assurance, Oberst with an emotive tremor.
It lacks a centrepiece to match the arresting depth and space of Sweetener’s “God Is A Woman”, but Grande handles its shifting moods and cast of producers (including pop machines Max Martin and Tommy Brown) with engaging class and momentum. With tracks that frequently dart from sprawling, psychedelic pop to scuzzy post-punk and rock references, the record has a superb dynamic that holds the listener’s attention, while the band navigate through a single, tumultuous relationship.
“Gotta live for something besides yesterdays,” Gallagher snarls on “Be Still”. You can hear his paranoia in the stuttering techno opener “Traffic”, which channels the heady grooves and pulses of electronic artist Floating Points (who, with his neuroscience background, seems like an entirely fitting reference point). (Elisa Bray)This endlessly fascinating artist’s seventh, full-length, album The Practice of Love is just as considered as 2016's Blood Bitch, examining one’s role in humankind and on Earth, and probing that favourite of pop-song themes: love. It feels a lot like a third coming. But there’s a deeper sense of personal connection to anchor Jacklin’s lyrical and melodic smarts. It’s technically a follow-up to 2014’s The Wild, the Wilderness, but the newfound boldness on this new work is startling.
This is precisely what Rapsody has done – in the most resonant way possible.Swift has a habit of putting her worst foot forward. With Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy, Hank Azaria. After years making peace with drift and uncertainty, she’s never sounded more sure of anything. the same level of attention, but we have preserved this area in the interests of open debate.