JUST LIKE HONEY
Much has been said about the pure cathartic power of Robyn’s brand of Scandipop and her flair for channelling heartbreak into dancefloor anthems, but can Honey — her first LP in eight years — add to that legacy?
In her own curated Spotify playlist “The Music That Inspired Honey”, Robyn has put together more than a handful of tracks that helped will her long-anticipated sixth album into existence. Opening with the celebrated Soviet pianist Emil Gilels’ rendition of Mozart’s Piano Sona
ta No.14b In C Minor, K457: II Adagio, the playlist encapsulates her wide-ranging taste in music as it flits from the funk/soul/ disco of the 70s (Gwen McCrae, George McCrae, Sylvester, Mary Clark) to a full spectrum of electronic music ranging from ambient and IDM to house and techno (Brian Eno, Aphex Twin, DJ Koze, Bicep, Roman Flügel). Listening to the record, one could almost trace all of these influences which are strewn across its nine tracks, precisely making up 40 minutes of thoughtful, unadulterated pop exhilaration.
The 39-year-old Swedish pop mainstay has announced her return with Missing U, a throbbing mid-tempo opener/lead cut that reckons with the loss of her longtime producer and friend Christian Falk and split (and, later, reunion) with her boyfriend. “There’s this empty space you left behind/ Now you’re not here with me,” she sings in the chorus which could also read as the appeasement of her fans. “I keep digging through our waste of time/ But the picture’s incomplete.”
Described as the disco version of Bruce Springsteen’s Streets Of Philadelphia, Baby Forgive Me showcases the submissive vulnerability she’s rarely displayed until now (“You got the power/ You set the price/ But baby, be fair, be nice”). Further on the understated the title track and Send To Robin Immediately, which samples Lil Louis’ house hit French Kiss, she allows her sexuality to drip (“At the heart of some kind of flower/ Stuck in glitter, strands of saliva/ Won’t you get me right where the hurt is?”) like it’s nobody’s business.
Because It’s In The Music glistens with sublime melancholy disco. Once again, she turns misery into something so hopeful, so glorious: “Because it’s in the music/ Heavenly bodies moving/ I’m right back in that moment/ And it makes me want to cry”). Elsewhere, there’s also a 90s house throwback ( Between The Lines) and Beach2k20, an oddball whose drum pattern is reminiscent of Timmy Thomas’ Why Can’t We Live Together. Quotable lyrics: “All these emotions are out of date/ I know it’s hard/ No peace of mind, but don’t shut me out/You know we’re the same kind/ A dying race”
( Human Being).
The verdict: A resounding yes! to the above question.
Listen to this: Missing U, Honey, Because It’s In The Music, Send To Robin Immediately.