She has become a house hold name since her rise in the 2000’s and offered us with some amazing songs (‘If I Aint Got You’ is timeless) and then again many years later with hits such as, ‘Girl On Fire and ‘Empire State of Mind’. However if I had turn round and suggest what album defines her career, I would struggle but hey some artists seem to be more singles based than others. In no way does that take away her talent though, her songwriting is top quality, while her piano playing and vocals are truly phenomenal. Those last two things should always be the driving the force for her music and luckily her new record does indeed allow her talents to shine through, while outshining her recent work due to sounding a lot more assured with her strengths this time around.
The Neo-soul opener, ‘True Without Love, is a very glamorous and almost spoken work affair, the boldness oozing out of Alicia within this track does really set the bench mark for the rest of record. Then the funk and soul vibe of ‘Time Machine’ is slightly enjoyable but again the strength of the track is how assured it all feels.
‘Authors of Forever’ finds Alicia singing about everyone being in the same boat and sailing towards the future together, her appreciation of community spirit here is very sweet. The artist feels comfortable here as we hear some 80’s bass and synth drums, its inoffensive and glides through nicely with the decent beat. Then the laziness of ‘Wasted Energy’ really disappoints, it seems like it just shoved the feature of Diamond Plantnumz very late on. Also the reggae beat is a nice dynamic shift on the record…it really matches the name of the song.
Next we have the question of, who wrote this song?????????? Yes its an Ed Sheehan collaboration, you’ll notice his typical hummmsss of the backing vocals! In truth its got a great blend of the two artists, the rhythm suits them both and the vocal melody too. Whats really beautiful here is what Alicia is singing here, the voice for ‘the hustlers’ and is in support for the young teachers, student doctors and single mothers waiting on a check to come.
Dreaminess is the best way to describe ‘3 Hour Drive (feat. Sampha), the tense melody and both vocals from the singers really allows this song to bring such a mood along. The British singer does really fit with the song, the choices of the features on this LP are amazing, especially on this one as both he and Keys compliment each other so well. ‘Me x 7 (feat. Tierra Whack) again shows off how well the amazing choices of features are, as Tierra Whack really shines on this minimal beat song with her rapping, apart from that it is a song that does pass you by.
‘Show Me Love’ brings a more happier tone to the track listing, with the feature of Miguel shinning through a really pleasant melody, it is a great 00’s throwback which is a must on an Alicia Keys album! Another feature follows on again, however the song ‘So Kind’ does go a lot further compared to the previous tracks, despite its laid back nature. Khalid does indeed fit into the song well, which has such a great guitar on it that is possibly one of the highlights of the album; overall this song feels a lot more of sophisticated than what we have heard in the previous ten or so minutes.
Some fresh air arrives with the stripped back ‘Gramercy Park’. Here we find Alicia Keys with a piano and guitar, it actually does feel like we are outside for the first time on the album because of how stripped back it is. Yes it is a needed change of ingredients at this point, yet sadly the chorus is a bit corny and the melody sounds a tad too familiar and that is the same for ‘Love Looks Better’. It could be harsh to say but we have a cousin of ‘Girl on Fire’ with a marching drum and pop rock chorus. Despite the musical aspect not feeling that fresh, the lyrics stand out as we hear the artists confidence again emitting so boldly and filled with ambition, the song starts out by how she only wants a dollar and a chance.
Again another Alicia Keys aesthetic arrives with ‘You Save Me (feat. Snoh Aalegra)’ as it sounds like it should be performed in a small ballroom with a thick fog of smoke! The melody is lovely and Snoh entering after the first chorus is such a delight, the elegance in the vocal delivery is beautiful. Naturally there are missteps on the record for sure, especially with ‘Jill Scott’, which is named after the feature. Alicia’s vocals do grain on me and the synths are also annoying, it does come across as a throwaway and a reused vocal melody from her discography. Also Jill’s part sounds like an awful middle eight from a bad Disney Classic song, not good.
We then arrive to the main event of the album, which reinforces my point earlier about Alicia’s single led albums. ‘Perfect Way To Die’ is possibly one of the highlights of her career, it is a real and fresh piece of art on Key’s thoughts and experiences of being black in America, it written after the death of George Floyd’s death. The melody is fantastic and piano part is haunting, with the main hook touching you so painfully and elegantly with; ‘you know I'm horrible at saying goodbye, and I think of all you could have done, at least you'll stay forever young, I guess you picked the perfect way to die’. It is an incredible take on the current climate and historical oppression of a race, the pain and honesty you hear in Alicia’s vocals cuts through like a knife. With no doubt this song will be a constant reminder on the awful and oppressive world that has been built up by greed and injustice, that leads to so many innocent lives to be taken away unlawfully.
I was curious to see what will follow the previous track and close the album, it was always going to be a hard act to follow. ‘Good Job’ was the right choice as it does not take you away completely from where we were with ‘Perfect Way To Die’ in terms of aesthetic. It gracefully moves on that is a very smart move and does have a sense of hope.
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