Aside from a host of new collaborators, Disclosure’s second album is just a less exciting version of their first.
Guy and Howard Lawrence became a household name in 2013 with their Sam Smith-featured single Latch. Not only did their subsequent debut record, Settle, go platinum, it also picked up a handful of Grammy, Brit Award and Mercury nominations along the way. From Sam Smith and Jessie Ware to Jamie Woon and Ed Macfarlane, Disclosure’s collaborations helped bring its well-balanced mixture of deep house, UK garage, soul, R&B, and pop to the masses. Settle made electronic dance music cool again after the genre had been so overrun by EDM.
Caracal, the duo’s follow-up to Settle, relies on the formula that brought their initial success and worldwide recognition. Apart from Sam Smith, the Lawrence brothers have recruited a cast of new, slightly eclectic collaborators to aid them on the 14-track set. Running nearly seven minutes, opener Nocturnal features R&B crooner du jour Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye). “My shadow doesn’t show in the dark/The night time is inclined to my heart/The emptiness I felt from the start/Will follow me ’til I fall apart,” Tesfaye coos alongside synth arpeggios reminiscent of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories and, by extension, Giorgio Moroder. It’s all well and good until it reaches the halfway mark where things get a bit tedious and we can’t help but mumbling “alright already” under our breath. Next up is the Sam Smith-assisted Omen, a sleek R&B number which, unfortunately, can’t hold a candle to their previous collaboration — the breakthrough single, Latch.
The Balearic-house Holding On finds the duo joining forces with seasoned American jazz singer-songwriter Gregory Porter. “I’ve seen times that were harder/I remember the taste of bitterness/Won’t you help me, my father?/Help me fall in the love that I have missed,” Porter offers up a slice of skilled soulfulness. Hourglass, on the other hand, gets its sass and zest from Jillian Hervey, one half of emerging New York neo-soul duo Lion Babe. Over a club-friendly beat, she sings “Eyes on the hourglass/As we sink into the sand/Time’s up, there’s nothing we can do about it/It’s fine, love, ’cause I know I’mma live without it.”
Superego (featuring Nao) recalls AlunaGeorge-featured White Noise from Disclosure’s debut album while electro-inspired Magnets rightfully arrives as the album’s centrepiece with its superstar guest vocalist Lorde. “Uh-oh, dancin’ past the point of no return/Let go, we can free ourselves of all we’ve learned,” she urges. “I love this secret language that we’re speaking/Say it to me, let’s embrace the point of no return/Let’s embrace the point of no return/Let’s embrace the point of no return.” Masterpiece (featuring Jordan Rakei) and Moving Mountains are the album’s two veritable slow jams while Jaded mirrors F For You, with Howard on vocal duties (“Why oh why do you have to lie/What are you afraid of/We know what you’re made of”).
For masters of reinvention such as Disclosure, it’s quite surprising that the majority of Caracal is reminiscent of the sound that dominates Settle. Almost every track can be paired — and compared — with its counterpart on Settle. For fans, this is, of course, not an issue, but for the rest of us, this familiarity can get tedious pretty quickly. Let’s hope the boys step out of their comfort zone and bring us something more groundbreaking next time around.
THE PLAYLIST
Klum Sinlapin Puen Singha/ Ma Ya Kon
Klum Sinlapin Puen Singha (Singha’s Artist Friends) is an ad-hoc collaboration of more than 40 musicians, songwriters and producers who came together to pay tribute to Prachathip “Singha” Musikapon, the late guitarist from the band Sqweez Animal. Written by Apartment Khun Pa’s Tul Waitoonkiat, Ma Ya Kon (Magic) is a ballad featuring vocals from the who’s who in the Thai music industry including Sqweez Animal’s remaining member Win Sirivongse, Yai Monotone, Burin Boonwisut, Yellow Fang and Pod Modern Dog, to name but a few.
Erykah Badu/ Hotline Bling (Remix)
American neo-soul queen Erykah Badu has announced a new mix tape, But You Cain’t Use My Phone, and shared with us a cover/remix of Drake’s Hotline Bling. Badu’s version runs seven and a half minutes, almost twice as long as the original, and features added lyrics co-written by her son Seven Benjamin. It’s largely a faithful rendition, but the highlight lies in a fake hotline message in which Badu gives callers sassy prompts like “If you’re calling to beg for some s*** in general, press 4/If you’re calling to beg for the s*** but this is that pre-call before the actual begging, press 5”).
Julian Velard/ The Night Ed Sheeran Slept On My Couch
On his latest single, The Night Ed Sheeran Slept on My Couch, New York-based singer-songwriter Julian Velard tells the story of when the British pop crooner, then a relatively unknown musician, happened to crash at his place back in the summer of 2009. “I’ve let a lot people sleep on my couch/Stretch themselves out, it’s a comfortable couch/All I remember is, is someone named Ed who needed a bed/He got the couch instead,” Velard reminisces about the ginger-haired superstar over wistful electric piano.
Snøskred/ Puzzle
Made up of Lars Ove Fossheim (vocals/guitar), Martin Hvidsten Berger (bass) and Kyrre Laastad (drums), emerging Norwegian indie trio Snøskred are known for their endearingly breezy sound. Their new single Puzzle, taken from their upcoming, yet-to-be-named second album, finds the Trondheim threesome sticking to their laid back soundscape that is built on dreamy guitars and carefree lyrics (“We eat our breakfast anytime we want”). A perfect gem to add to your road trip playlist while you drive with the top down with the wind blowing through your hair.
Janet Jackson (featuring Missy Elliott)/ Burnitup!
After teasing us with the first two singles from her comeback studio album Unbreakable — her first in seven years, Janet promptly follows up with Burnitup!, a collaboration with rapper Missy Elliott. Here, Jackson gets the party hopping, singing “When the DJ play this we gon’ dance like no one’s watching/Hey Mr DJ, bump the track and won’t you turn it up?” Then Elliott chimes in: “Now this your jam, now do your dance/Make it work, make it work!” It’s a typical upbeat R&B jam reminiscent of Jackson’s previous dance hits like All For You and Feedback.
