Reviving a very specific blend of 90s influences into a swirling pop core, Kelela is walking a narrow but powerful path on her latest record. Though it almost undersells its writing and sonic power at times, there’s a fascinating world to this record that’s begging to be discovered. As the mix starts to expand on “Point Blank,” the drum and bass influences mix into this intoxicating, blurry mess that’s as transfixing as it can be disorienting. Though it plays extremely slow, “Outta Time” is roaring with a dark menace and a sense of grandeur that balances things enough to make it a cinematic marvel with the right headphones/speakers to get all the notes at their peak. Despite its short runtime, the whole album could be summed up in the magnetic force of “Linknb” and its rolling psychedelic charge that leaves you dazed and awed. “The Bridge” has a similar beauty to it, though it expands through more lush vocal flourishes and lets the beats play to more of PinkPantheress’s strengths without taking away from the core track itself.
Through acoustic strumming and a soft clapping beat, Queens of the Stone Age have taken a lighter touch coming off their Catacombs work, and use the sonic palette to great emotional effect. With Joshua Homme’s vocals hitting a more poignant place in the stripped-down tones, you can hear a man who’s been worn down by the world and hard times around him. And with the state of the lyrics describing a man whose intoxications and mean streak have led to a personal “death” of sorts, it’s not hard to feel like Homme is laying his whole life’s regrets out plainly here. Nikki Lane’s vocals add an extra heavy layer to the mix, serving as both a partner agreeing with his confession and as a fellow wanderer who has also had their “enlightened” moment come to pass. As the sunburnt guitars blare over that backing section of the song, you can feel the desolation in one’s mind becoming all too real as a result.
Keeping the jungle scene from settling too much into its tendencies, Nia Archives keeps the genre fresh. There are such rich tapestries in the layers of the melodies, detailing and vocals of this record, that many who would potentially feel limited by its heart of jungle, and drum and bass mechanics may be willing to push through for this glorious meal. “Danger” sets you off in a jungle haze, with vocal melodies that feel utterly classic from the get, with enough small compositional choices in how the song is broken up to make it transcend genre. There are even more sonically dazzling choices on “Vertical” with the synths glittering like stars, and the vocals giving bits of Nelly Furtado at times on this glowing gem. As Jorja Smith adds to the vocal dancing on this album, “Get Me Down” transforms into a vibrant back and forth, like waves crashing in and out, though never quite shifting momentums as Nia Archives manages elsewhere on the record. The shift to a candy, pop-punk flourish on “Boys in Blue” is a fun swap, using the aesthetics of the record to amp up an already punchy track, rather than conform it too much to one train of writing.
Bringing a sublime classic rock flavour without having to become derivative, Fatal Vision feels like that blast from the past you never heard back in the day. “Girl Against the World” blends a Survivor and Flock of Seagulls sound, and roars at you like a ferocious hair metal classic, complete with those soaring vocals. The band switch to a more sprawling and driven approach on “Run with Me,” as they let the drums send things flying, and craft a solid, fiery ballad. The synths land on a new high in the galactically-charged “No More Tears to Cry,” as they manage to give a few powerful stop-and-go moments, and still send you off in a blaze of glory. The spirit of Meat Loaf lies in the bones of “The Best Is Yet to Come,” as they slowly knock through the walls of the hardest challenges of life to hit a triumphant stride that makes you feel like you can take on the world.
Gracie Abrams has always had an awkward place to grow as an artist in the musical landscape given her quick rise to massive fame, but that doesn’t mean she hasn’t been able to find some musical nuggets in that time. That said, her latest effort still feels a touch hollow due to its recycled musical choices, and messages that feel real but a little disconnected from Abrams as a personality. Unfortunately, given the pedigree of the co-writers on this record, it both suffers from sounding too much like other work those others have done, and also feels like it’s simply playing on a lot of those sonic ideas in less obvious but still noticeable ways. “Hit the Wall” plays to a very relatable downward spirals many of us hit, and slowly crumble under, though its musical offerings feel a little too played out in the modern pop landscape, especially coming from the co-writers at hand here. After the Chairlift-esque synths settle in, “Look at My Life” blooms into a rushing track full of glorious momentum, and inspiring lunges at trying to take authority in your own life. “Good Reason” takes smart lessons from its predecessors, playing to every one of Abrams’ vocal strengths and making a track that is powerfully intimate and quiet, while still having strong dynamic power. The track’s inherent lyrical visuals work well here, and let Abrams’ performance enhance how it plays to the mind’s eye. There’s a fun bounce to the short and kicking “Minibar” that plays more like a fun musical bite that never tries to outstate itself, and honestly, it makes for a much more charming pop play on this record.
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