On her 2023 debut album, “Paint My Bedroom Black,” Holly Humberstone considered her interior life, turning to her worries, wishes and emotions for inspiration. The British singer-songwriter’s sophomore album, “Cruel World,” sees Humberstone take her atmospheric pop and look outward — at the space between breakups, long distance relationships, connections and settings that make up a life.
If before, she looked to mute out color (“I’m gonna paint my bedroom black,” as she once sang) here, she embraces shades of the world around her. Lyrically, Humberstone draws on their symbolism (the guitar-and-sax retro “Red Chevy,” the psychedelic “Blue Dream,” the plaintive ballad “Peachy”). Yellow appears as a “patch of golden sun,” on “Lucy,” an ode to her sisters and girlhood; orange is the mandarin light that interrupts “Blue Dream”; green is the globe that “keeps on spinning to the beat” on the frantic love song “To Love Somebody.”
“White Noise” looks for comfort in the external: “So play a sad song DJ,” Humberstone pleads over the country-tinged track, chimes and a lap steel sneaking in beneath synths and percussion. “I just want to sway tonight,” she sings. She’s overstimulated but still looks to a busy dance floor for relief.
Sonically, Humberstone has always embraced abundance. She’s succeeded in building a lush musical world since her early EPs, because of her knack for pairing cool, vulnerable lyrics with her temporal sound, which combines live instrumentation with electronics.
And it’s apparent from the top: The album starts with the 45-second instrumental “So It Starts …”, strings warming up over synths that build to a cinematic climax. The driving melody carries into “Make It All Better,” and the strings return on album closer “Beauty Pageant,” which also samples the French love song “Le Coup D’soleil.” Throughout the album, Humberstone’s melodies are employed with full confidence, melted together like a wax seal for the project.
“Open your window darling, the world is in full bloom,” Humberstone coos over acoustic guitar on “Lucy.” The reminder is there for someone else, but it also feels like acknowledgement from Humberstone that despite heartache and uncertainty, she’s ready to embrace it all. And by stepping out of herself, she’s reached a new horizon.
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“Cruel World” by Holly Humberstone
Four stars out of five.
On repeat: “To Love Somebody,” “Red Chevy”
Skip it: “So It Starts …,” if you want to jump right in
For fans of: Brooding pop, Olivia Rodrigo, Gracie Abrams
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