After a four year hiatus, Joy Crookes has hit back with a raw, retro soulful mix of R&B and passion in her new album ‘Juniper’ that has been well worth the wait.
It is clear to see that Joy has spent a lot of time looking inward and has reflected in the last four years since her debut album ‘Skins’. She raises her mental health in a completely unfiltered way that we haven’t seen before, it is raw, personal and direct with the listener. Her use of conversational phrasing forms a parasocial connection with the listener with the cadences in her voice that make it feel as though she’s catching you up on everything over a coffee. In an interview with Glamour she said: “I basically had a mental health crisis between albums”. While this album has melancholic and darker themes, she sounds stronger and more self-assured. It is clear that Joy has grown in the last 4 years and is now able to write almost as a different person reflecting on the past.
On her opening track ‘Brave’ she sings: “I’m pretty fucking miserable”, her mental health is a reoccurring theme within this album and are explored thoroughly through romance, family and herself. On ‘House with a Pool’ she sings in 3rd person “She brands it love so desperately, but baby girl that ain’t no two way street” as if her past self still needs to learn and grow, presents herself current self as a wiser more knowing and self reflective figure who has learnt from her past relationships.
Romance is a common presence on the album, with many of the stand-out tracks centering around love and its complications. ‘Somebody to you’ features secretive subtle backing vocals from Sam Fender, as well as ‘Mathematics’ featuring grime legend Kano. While she also has a feature from Vince Staples on ‘Pass the Salt’ too, Joy Crookes is still the shining role in this album and we adhere to that. This is a personal album about her life, and her troubles, and the features are simply characters helping to describe it with her.
Joy’s time away seems to have strengthened her both personally and musically. She returns sounding more assured and confident to explore new genres while still retaining her recognisable vocals. While neo-soul still presides in her sound, she has experimented with retro-soul, trip hop and jazz which is refreshing. In an interview with the BBC she said: “Making sure that the songs sounded the way they should, to match the song writing, that was the hard part.”. Her angelic voice leads the frontline of instruments into battle, ranging from strings, harp, heavy bass and a consistent regular groovy drum beat, something Amy Winehouse would be proud of.
Joy creates some incredibly catchy hooks, and dramatic pauses that magically make your shoulders sway from side to side like a boat against waves. Syncopated rhythms affirm most tracks, allowing a simple groove on some of the saddest of songs, creating a creative contrast which we have not heard before from her. Cunningly the tracks often end on darker phrases, slipping into minor chords that leave a eeriness of reflection in the music, to allow the listeners to sit with what she is saying, so her message really embeds.
Joy Crookes intermission was necessary, both for her and her listeners. It has allowed for her to understand herself more, and create a project with deep and real meaning, and created a larger anticipation for her project which did not disappoint. I would give ‘Juniper’ a 7.5/10 the wait made the comeback just that bit sweeter.
7.5/10
