ALBUM REVIEWS
Agnetha Fältskog – A+
Agnetha Faltskog’s voice is likely to be familiar to anyone who’s been to a birthday party or wedding reception and heard one of Abba’s most popular hits. But while Dancing Queen and Mamma Mia remain floor fillers after nearly 50 years, Faltskog’s solo material will be less familiar to most people. Faltskog, like Abba bandmates AnniFrid Lyngstad Reuss, Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, was successful in Sweden before she fell in love with Ulvaeus and became part of one of the most successful pop groups of all time. This album A+ – which revisits Faltskog’s 2013 album A – is easy listening with Faltskog bringing her emotional storytelling to gentle, cosy songs and dancefloor fillers. Where Do We Go From Here? – the only new song – shows how her voice has matured into something slightly raspier.
Maple Glider – I Get Into Trouble Review by Matthew George
“You don’t know me, do you, really?” Tori Zietsch sings on Do You, the superb opening track on I Get Into Trouble. Her second album as Maple Glider, and a big leap forward, features 10 tracks lasting a total of only 36 minutes, leaving you wanting more. The songs are deceptively simple, sometimes just acoustic guitar and Zietsch’s pure voice, or the most minimal drums and keyboards. But there’s plenty going on under the surface and tracks like Do You and Dinah have earworm melodies that are counterpoint to serious lyrical themes. Zietsch was brought up in a restrictive Christian household in New South Wales, and she examines themes of religion, sexuality, consent and shame. At times painfully honest, I Get Into Trouble transforms pain into optimism.
Holly Humberstone – Paint My Bedroom Black Review by Mason Oldridge
After a recent few years of success, Holly Humberstone is back this time with her LP debut. An album of downtempo pop, Paint My Bedroom Black is a fitting title for this record of heartbreak and self-criticism. It might give off emo vibes but that doesn’t extend beyond the lyrics. Instead, what we get is a breath of fresh air with balanced instrumentation and clean production met with vulnerable and gentle vocals. Antichrist is a decent lead single though it is ballad Kissing In Swimming Pools that is the highlight. Complimented by an acoustic guitar, it tells of a desire for intimacy. Having established her unique sound, Humberstone runs with it on this debut of hers and demonstrates clear talent across the tracks, solidifying her place in the industry.
The Streets – The Darker The Shadow the Brighter The Light Review by Matthew George
Mike Skinner is back 12 years on with a new album as The Streets – something he’d vowed never to do. He chants “whey-oh, too much yayo” in the tale of someone feeling terrible from Monday to Wednesday after overdoing the cocaine-fuelled clubbing, only for the cycle to start again from Thursday. From the first seconds of this opening track Too Much Yayo it could only be The Streets, Skinner as distinctive as back in 2002 with Original Pirate Material, yet with the other tracks revealing his range. The album accompanies a film of the same name which Skinner wrote, directed, shot, edited, scored and funded, as well as acting in the noir murder mystery based in London’s clubland, and featuring a DJ called Mike.