[rating=8.00]
Four solo albums on, Tracey Thorn’s postscript to her tenure with Everything but the Girl continues to show quality control firmly in check. The succinctly titled Record retains the inherent imaginative qualities that made that duo so satisfying to both denizens of the dance floor and those that preferred their pop remain warm, engaging and eternally effusive. Indeed, Thorn learned those lessons well, and her determination to stick to that template suggests it was never her intention to deviate from the direction set early on, even if it meant she and collaborator Ben Watt were destined to go their separate ways.
Indeed, from the first propulsive notes of opening track “Queen,” it’s clear she’s still in a full forward thrust. There’s a decided radiance and illumination attached to early entries “Air,” “Guitar” and “Smoke” (the latter of which finds her declaring “London you’re in my blood” as a sort of musical mantra), and even as the busy beat of “Sister” steers her further towards the disco ball, she does so in a way that brings to mind more Annie Lennox than Sister Sledge. Thorn’s music is sly and seductive by design, suggesting that rhythm is merely a means but not the entire mantra. “Go,” a shimmering ballad with eerie, exquisite appeal, demonstrates a decided craft and caress that’s yet to be lost even in the most effusive outpour of the album’s truest dance designs.
The electro pulse of the aptly dubbed “Dance Floor” aside, Record is, well, a record that doesn’t sacrifice verve for vitality. It paints the picture of a woman coping with the realities of life — middle age versus adolescence, raising children, and the need to reconcile it all while retaining a sense of self. Easily her best effort yet, at least as far as her post Everything but the Girl career is concerned, Record favors revelation over revolution.
