La Roux // Trouble in Paradise

Her trademark red quiff and angular, asexual style has been missing for the last five years since her debut album blew up all over the world; Skream's incredible dub step remix of her popular single In For The Kill helped her music reach a whole new audience. Now La Roux is back with her second album, and this time she's softer and warmer. Having split from her songwriting partner, suffered from losing her voice and recovering from her very early, steep and sudden rise to fame, this new album is less personal and takes on different voices and observations of the world around her. Her voice is more lyrical and organic sounding. Overall the album feels more Tropicana 80's-style, with many catchy choruses and less cold, harsh drum machines going on. In a lot of ways it kinda reminds me of Bananarama-era pop; not necessarily a bad thing, but as a result the one love ballad Paradise Is You, feels just a little too over produced. She's got a powerful voice and I wish she could let it stand on its own sometimes. I think this is why Skream's remix was so popular; her voice is a true and clear sound that in isolation blows me away.

8/10

Lizz