ALBUM REVIEWS
There’s a distinctive feeling that ties all of Holly Humberstone’s dark, brooding songs together. Since the release of her debut single ‘Deep End’ in January 2020, the Grantham-born artist’s candid, often anguished portraits of her personal life – from losing momentum in a relationship (‘Falling Asleep At The Wheel’) to London flatshares (‘The Walls Are Way Too Thin’) – have been aptly matched to artwork awash with shades of red, black and purple. “My favourite artists create work that magics up an entirely new universe,” she said recently. “That’s what I want to do with my album and live shows.”
While Humberstone’s debut album has a decidedly on-brand title – ‘Paint My Bedroom Black’ – this track actually signals a much more optimistic outlook. “Now I’m pulling out of your driveway / Finally I’m living, not surviving,” she proclaims atop a liberating guitar riff. Still, it’s an imperfect rebirth – a coming-of-age in which Humberstone is still wrestling with all the conflicting sides of herself: the extrovert and the introvert; the Gen Z pop star and the chronic doom-scroller who can’t text her friends back.
This knotty conflict looms large on tracks like the distorted ‘Antichrist’, on which Humberstone bluntly asks herself: “Am I the Antichrist? / How do I sleep at night?” On the lush, indie-pop leaning ‘Lauren’, she apologises to a friend for being absent, while the acoustic, pared-back ‘Room Service’ finds her longing for someone to ease the loneliness of touring.
The confessional ‘Into Your Room’, meanwhile, sees Humberstone admit to her relationship flaws while also giving herself permission to fall hard. “Without you my soul is eternally doomed / You’re the centre of the universe, my sorry ass revolves around you,” she sings over plump synths, pairing unabashed romanticism with deadpan self-deprecation. These cinematic vignettes make for the album’s most intoxicating moments, whether it’s falling in love on the woozy slow dance ‘Kissing In Swimming Pools’, or two lovers looking at the same sky on the D4vd collaboration ‘Superbloodmoon’.
Alongside her piercing lyrics, Humberstone’s debut LP is all the richer because she steps out of her sonic comfort zone. Surprises arise on the layered, Bon Iver-esque ‘Baby Blues’, and brilliant ‘Flatlining’, which temporarily turns into a shifty electronic banger. Ultimately, ‘Paint My Bedroom Black’ finds the artist trying to do right by her loved ones and make sense of her own turbulent world, but it’s also a cue to listeners that things could go anywhere from here. In pursuit of an authentic sound, Humberstone proves that she’s not only inhabiting her own space – and beckoning listeners in – but also building out the walls.
Details
Holly Humberstone – Paint My Bedroom Black artwork
Release date: October 13, 2023
Record label: Polydor / Darkroom / Geffen
ALBUM REVIEWS
Grandeur sits at the heart of ‘This Music May Contain Hope’, RAYE’s second album, and the result feels nothing short of breathtaking. On this record, the singer born Rachel Keen explores a wide spectrum of sounds across its 73 minute length, moving from emotional ballads to lively funk moments and the jazz pop style she has become closely associated with. It can feel overwhelming at first, yet the magic that comes from RAYE fully committing to her vision makes the experience rewarding from start to finish.
‘This Music May Contain Hope’, a conceptual project about pushing through insecurity and heartbreak, unfolds like a lavish stage production. RAYE takes on the dual role of main character and guiding voice throughout the story. “Allow me to set the scene. Our story begins at 2:27am on a rainy night in Paris. Cue the thunder,” she says during the opening track ‘Girl Under The Grey Cloud’, which arrives with sweeping orchestral strings. Spoken passages appear across the album, helping shape the narrative and giving the project a sense of direction, almost like hearing the official recording of a Broadway show.
With this framework in place, the South London artist allows herself to fully explore the album’s diverse musical palette, and most of the time it works in her favor. Sometimes she fully embraces the theatrical side of the concept, especially during the closing section of the smooth R&B track ‘The WhatsApp Shakespeare’. Other moments are delivered more straightforwardly, such as the emotional slow building ballad ‘I Know You’re Hurting’. She also revisits her earlier dance influences with the impressive house track ‘Life Boat’.
Across the entire album, two things stand out clearly. RAYE’s flexible vocals sound better than ever, and her songwriting feels sharper than it has before. Take the playful highlight ‘I Hate The Way I Look Today’, a swing jazz inspired track reminiscent of Ella Fitzgerald, where she admits “I’m okay to be lonely / If I’m lonely and skinny / I have such silly self-loathing thoughts, it seems”. Then there is the emotional storytelling in ‘Nightingale Lane’: “It was right there, early June / Next to Old Park Avenue / Standing in the rain, I watched him walk away”.
Despite all the vulnerability and emotional struggles explored throughout the record, RAYE ultimately reaches a place of optimism, staying true to the album’s title. She gathers her close friends on ‘Click Clack Symphony’ with support from Hans Zimmer, finds closure with guidance from Al Green on the smooth seventies soul inspired ‘Goodbye Henry’, and reaches toward something greater alongside her sisters Amma and Absolutely on the uplifting ‘Joy’ as she searches to be “free of all the pain and every fear”. After the stormy opening imagery of that “rainy night” and “thunder”, RAYE eventually realizes that “the sun exists behind the clouds”, as she shares on ‘Happier Times Ahead’.
‘This Music May Contain Hope’ shows RAYE performing at her absolute peak. The album feels huge in scale and emotionally powerful, yet it remains rooted in honest experiences and real feelings. Yes, it asks a lot from the listener, but that is also what makes it so special. Every dramatic moment and musical shift feels like RAYE claiming her independence and finally creating music entirely on her own terms.
