Georgia is a agency believer within the cathartic potential of a giant, glowing pop refrain. On her third album ‘Euphoric’, the London producer and songwriter – born Georgia Barnes, however recognized mononymously by her first identify – views the world round her in technicolour: the synths shimmer as if there’s glitter embedded inside them; Georgia’s voice can veer into sounding breathless and astonished. “The solar is coming up once more,” she sings on current single ‘All Night time’. “The music and our desires are all we want.”
After releasing a self-titled debut in 2015, Georgia discovered her viewers three years later with follow-up ‘Searching for Thrills’; she would go on to earn a Mercury Prize nomination and tour with HAIM and Carly Rae Jepsen, invigorating swathes of latest followers along with her lush, ‘80s-inspired tales of dancefloor romances. Sonically, the report was flooded with vocoder results and profitable moments, however was so tightly constructed that, at instances, it was onerous to differentiate the extent of persona she was bringing to the get together as a performer.
Sadly, that drawback persists on ‘Euphoric’. The place Georgia had beforehand labored on all of her personal materials from a house studio, for album three, she flew to LA to work with producer Rostam [Clairo, Charli XCX]; the journey would assist her to “confront numerous elements of my life” as she just lately instructed NME. It’s clear that Georgia has tried to unpack what this private epiphany means for her: she tells us that she has felt wildly lovestruck (‘It’s Euphoric’), and, at instances, has discovered partying to be an emotional refuge (‘So What’). But, she doesn’t do a lot to stamp her personal id on the songs – as uplifting as they’re. Lyrically, she continues to drag away from any huge reveal, seemingly hesitating on the thought of giving an excessive amount of away.
The place a sure lack of individuality seeps into Georgia’s music, the songs on ‘Euphoric’ as a substitute largely derive energy from the manufacturing. Animated by ribbons of a number of drum loops, ‘Reside Like We’re Dancing Half II’ – a sequel to the 2020 Mura Masa collaboration of the identical identify – will definitely join with competition crowds this summer season, whereas the dreamlike sequencing of ‘Maintain On’ generates a sense of weightlessness.
There’s a sure energy to ‘Euphoric’, but it surely definitely might have been a way more potent album. It’s a disgrace, and a missed alternative: we don’t study a lot about Georgia’s new worldview on a report that’s, supposedly, devoted to transferring on from the previous.
Particulars
- Launch date: July 28, 2023
- File label: Domino
