Sampha's long-anticipated debut solo LP sees him dealing with loss and anxiety as he arrives on the scene fully formed as an artist.
Sampha/ Process
Even if you don't know who Sampha is, chances are you have heard his voice before. Hailing from South London, Sampha Sisay is first and foremost synonymous with UK electronic act SBTRKT. As well as co-producing, he co-wrote and sang on much of SBTRKT's excellent self-titled debut album, released a year after the release of Sampha's first solo EP, Sundanza. It wasn't long before his soulful baritone and adept songwriting and producing skills were recognised by top-tier pop heavyweights. To date, the guy has lent his multiple talents to everyone from Beyonce and Kanye West to Drake and Frank Ocean.
Just when we thought he'd put his solo career on indefinite hold, the 27-year-old artist finally rolls out his long-awaited debut album, Process. A follow-up to his 2013 Dual EP, it's born out of the emotional aftermath of his mother's death from cancer and subsequent personal turmoil. Opener Plastic 100°C kicks things off with a flutter of Japanese harp and Neil Armstrong's recorded voice taken from the Apollo 11 transcript: "I'll work my way over into the sunlight here without looking directly into the sun." As Sampha gently makes his way to the chorus, he laments just how fragile human life is: "It's so hot I've been melting out here/ I'm made out of plastic out here/ You touched down in the base of my fears."
Percussion-laden lead single Blood On Me further expands on this inevitable anxiety with a tale of unknown entities that come after you ("Grey hoodies, they cover their heads/ I can't see their faces"). Brilliantly written, the lyrics paint a scene seemingly straight off a horror film ("In this forest runnin' away I slip up/ I'm on the edge now … I swear they smell the blood on me/ I hear them coming for me").
Although Kora Sings and (No One Knows Me) Like the Piano share a motherly theme, they couldn't be further apart in their production. Built on synths and skittering rhythms, the former is an upbeat banger whereas the latter is a heart-wrenching, sparse piano ballad that goes to highlight his delicately battered vocals. Reverse Faults is underpinned by a whirlwind of pulsating synths and trap beats. Under and Timmy's Prayer take things down a few notches with a lush groove. Again, Sampha's voice glides along effortlessly and simply outshines the instrumentation.
As a whole, Process possesses that nervous undercurrent brought forth by a dense haze of contemporary R&B production and some deeply personal songwriting. Listening to it, things can get claustrophobic at times. Thankfully, though, there's always a relief that comes in a form of Sampha's voice -- a thing of sublime beauty that straddles understated and poignant. Indeed, it did take him a while to put out his debut full-length solo album, but the result here is nothing short of stunning.
THE PLAYLIST
Ziriphon Fireking/ 201.1 KM
Chiang Mai-based post rockers Ziriphon Fireking are back with 201.1 KM, the lead single from their new studio outing, 201.1 KM from Earth. Similar to their previous cuts, this is a sprawling instrumental piece that takes its own sweet time building to the cathartic halfway mark. Despite its near seven-minute run-time, the song doesn't feel monotonous, thanks to the bright keyboard chords that permeate it.
Mac DeMarco/ My Old Man
My Old Man is one of the two new songs taken from Mac DeMarco's upcoming new LP, This Old Dog, the follow-up to 2015's mini-album Another One and 2014's Salad Days. Set against the breezy acoustic guitar backdrop, the song finds DeMarco lamenting about "how old and cold and tired and lonely" he's become. There's a distinct Kurt Vile vibe happening throughout the track, especially during the opening verse ("Look in the mirror/ Who do you see?/ Someone familiar/ But surely not me") which echoes the sentiment of Vile's 2015 excellent cut, Pretty Pimpin.
Blondie/ Fun
The new studio album, Pollinator, by iconic new wave outfit Blondie won't drop until May, but we have springy lead single, Fun, to tide us over until then. Co-written by TV On The Radio's Dave Sitek, the song is built on the all-too-familiar synth flourishes and disco bass groove that harken back to the days of classic Blondie. Debbie Harry's vocals remain a focal point here as she gleefully sings "Take me back home again/ I'll make love with you/ Take me back home with you." The forthcoming record is something of an A-listers party as it's produced by John Congleton and featuring contributions from the likes of Sia, Dev Hynes, Joan Jett and Johnny Marr, among others.
James Blunt/ Love Me Better
The British singer-songwriter and reigning king of deprecating Twitter posts returns with Love Me Better, lead track lifted from his March-due LP, The Afterlove. Prefaced by "If you thought 2016 was bad -- I'm releasing an album in 2017" tweet, the song sees Blunt inching away from his saccharine songcraft to embrace the playfulness frequently portrayed through social media. "Saw you standing outside a bar/ Would have said 'you're beautiful' but I've used that line before," he quips over the lite-EDM production which borders on something The Chainsmokers would put out.
Future Islands/ Ran
Ahead of the release of their forthcoming fifth album, The Far Field, American synth-pop group Future Islands tease us with its first taste, Ran. The song follows in the footsteps of their breakthrough single Seasons (Waiting on You) with a propulsive new wave melody, plinky synth lines, and longing lyrics. "On these roads/ Out of love, so it goes/ How it feels when we fall, when we fold," vocalist Sam Herring croons in his signature deep baritone. "How we lose control, on these roads/ How it sings as it goes/ Flight of field, driving snow/ Knows the cold/ Ran round the wailing world."
