SOUND JUDGEMENT

THE LATEST ALBUM RELEASES RATED AND REVIEWED

WHAT’S YOUR PLEASURE? JESSIE WARE

WHAT’S Your

Pleasure? is a refreshing return to the dancefloor for Jessie Ware. The 12-track album is smoky, hazy and flirtatious with intimate lyrics and a contemporary take on 80s disco and funk.

Her electricity in Save A Kiss could fill a sweaty nightclub as her powerful tones pulse with the strings and synths. Whispered verses build sexual anticipation in the sultry title-track, while Mirage (Don’t Stop) is a hazy summer anthem. A return to music following the success of her podcast Table Manners, Ware’s latest release is, undoubtedly, a pleasure.

WOMEN IN MUSIC PT. III HAIM

WITH Women in Music Pt. III, Haim show there are melodies and textures aplenty to explore and do so with their customary elan.

It’s hard to pin down Haim’s sound here, with an almost Nashville vibe on The Steps, all yearning guitars and soaring chorus, but then elsewhere, we find minimal band arrangements, velvety saxophone lines weaving in and out, lending a Jamaican flavour to the surprisingly ska-like Los Angeles. But just when you think you’ve figured this album out, they serve up I Know Alone, a song that borrows beats from millennial UK garage and pairs them up with downbeat indie lyrics.

Three singles released last year are included as bonus tracks.

JID002 ROY AYERS

AFTER 18 years away, Roy Ayers’ return to studio recording is short but incredibly sweet. The eight-track JID002 was born out of a series of shows in his hometown Los Angeles and produced totally analogue. Perhaps partly for that reason, Ayers really feels like he’s recapturing the 70s LA soul for which he’s famed while absorbing some of the newer jazz styles he had such a great role in inspiring. Highlights include the infectious funk bass on Soulful and Unique, and opener Synchronize Vibration. Whether you’re a jazz and soul aficionado or just want something smooth to accompany a sunny Sunday, this is a delight from start to finish.