Warpaint – Warpaint  (4/5)

It has been a long, arduous few years since Warpaint last poured their entrancing and often fragile style into record form with The Fool. As the appeal of the California girls’ sound has grown, so has the pressure placed upon them to maintain it without simply replicating it. Fortunately their latest release displays little attempt to emulate the last, though its reflective nature is undeniably Warpaint. Instead, the stylistic originality the album bursts with looks set to make it their best work yet.

While the subtle layers of vocal harmony remain, it is the warm textures of keys and electronic samples permeating the music that create its defining ambient quality. ‘Intro’ promptly swallows the listener into this new soundscape, which later provides the backdrop for the mesmerising ‘Love Is To Die’; a melancholic cry underpinned by their iconic guitar work. The rhythm section truly shines throughout, providing entrancing grooves on tracks like ‘Feeling Alright’ reminiscent of the Black Keys. The percussive nature to ‘Disco // very’ creates an almost tribal quality, while a smooth bass line reinforces what can only be described as the soundtrack to an acid trip on ‘Go In’.

The quartet’s captivating voices retain a dominant role. Coupled with an airy reverberation present on ‘Drive’ and ‘Biggy’, the effect is positively hypnotic. Although some might argue this new direction lacks the rawness which created ‘Elephants’, their ethereal sound is undoubtedly elevated by it. It seems no accident that the album is self-titled. It is a statement in itself, a redefinition of what Warpaint represent. Warpaint is a risk that has definitely paid off, an astounding and impressive development from a band with an increasingly unique sound.

Warpaint – Love Is To Die

Sam Corcoran