Entertainment

Albums: Dua Lipa, Mystery Jets, Purity Ring and Thundercat

Dua Lipa's new album is called Future Nostalgia
Dua Lipa's new album is called Future Nostalgia Dua Lipa's new album is called Future Nostalgia

Dua Lipa

Future Nostalgia

Alex Green

7/10

ON HER self-titled debut, Dua Lipa captured the zeitgeist like no other – borrowing millennial text-speak (IDGAF) and sending simple messages of female empowerment (New Rules). Future Nostalgia offers a more challenging prospect for fans and casual listeners alike.

The concept, if you can call it that, is a deep dive into the chintzy glamour of the 80s, channelled through the lens of today's slick production. The highs are high – Don't Stop Now remains one of 2019's finest jams – but the lows are frustratingly so. Physical, the album's second single, wouldn't be out of place soundtracking Jane Fonda in the aerobics studio, but here it feels like little more than a misjudged parody.

The album's best tracks are in its second half, once Lipa begins to drop the guise of nonchalant pop star and let her personality shine.

Mystery Jets

A Billion Heartbeats

Charlotte Kelly

8/10

MORE than ever, the army of doctors, nurses and those often so overlooked by the masses are now on the frontline of one of the worst global pandemics in modern times.

It seems fitting that the Mystery Jets go forward with the release of A Billion Heartbeats, a release delayed from September 2019 as Blaine Harrison underwent emergency surgery that postponed the accompanying tour and which marks founding member William Rees' final album, havinf announced his departure in February.

Inspired by current global issues from the rise of the alt-right to the women's protests, it's a gutsy and punchy offering with delicious riffs and thought-provoking lyrics for the listener to mull over while unconsciously bopping their head, from its opener Screwdriver to the closing track Wrong Side Of The Tracks.

A heartfelt 'thank-you' to the NHS arrives in the form of Hospital Radio, written by Blaine during his extended stay at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.

Purity Ring

Womb

Matthew George

7/10

CANADIAN electronic pop duo Purity Ring return with their third album, and first in five years, entirely written, performed and produced by singer Megan James and multi-instrumentalist Corin Roddick.

WOMB smoothes their already polished sound even further, to the extent that some tracks can slip by unnoticed. They are known for combining pop and contemporary R&B sounds, adding Autotune to pink lightning and subtle beats on some tracks.

Song titles are at times reminiscent of Cocteau Twins, as in rubyinsides and stardew, while the lyrics are dark at times with James singing "It still feels like I can't stop crying" in pink lightning and "The storm is coming, I feel it in my scars" in stardew.

They're only a hit single away from moving from cult popularity to the mainstream, but these tracks may lack the killer hooks to ensure radio domination.

It Is What It Is

Thundercat

Stephen Jones

8/10

BEST known for his virtuouso playing on the electric double bass, Thundercat, aka Stephen Lee Bruner, is often Zappa-esque in his musical contortions.

He has Zappa's sense of whimsy too, and it's in plentiful supply again on his latest record, It Is What It Is – like Take Dragonball Durag, a paean to his love of anime.

But there's plenty more than fun and musicianship here: in his more sincere moments Thundercat really has the power to move. Much of It Is What It Is is inspired by the late Mac Miller, a former collaborator who took his own life last year, and it culminates with its title track – a gentle but heart-rending reflection on the loss of a close friend.

The biggest moments, nonetheless, are formed from the collaborations. Kamasi Washington almost steals the show with a soaring sax cameo on Interstellar Love, but the sensational single Black Qualls – featuring Steve Lacey, Steve Arrington and Childish Gambino – is best of all.