Blood

by Lianne La Havas

Overview

After she completed extensive touring in support of Is Your Love Big Enough?, Lianne La Havas visited Jamaica with her native Jamaican mother and connected with distant relatives. Additionally inspired by her Greek roots through her father -- hence the album's title -- and possibly fortified by her experiences recording with Prince, Alt-J, and Tourist, Blood is no mere rehash of the Top Five U.K. debut that preceded it. Matt Hales, aka Aqualung, remains on board as a production and co-writing partner, but he contributes to fewer songs. Among the collaborators here are Stephen McGregor (son of Freddie McGregor), retro-soul specialist Jamie Lidell, Disclosure's Howard Lawrence, and pop heavy weights Mark Batson and Paul Epworth. La Havas goes for a bigger, bolder, more produced sound without glossing over her singer/songwriter/guitarist origin. The point is made in the opener, a storybook love song about being swept away that is carried on a rhythm firmer than anything heard on the debut. On "Tokyo," La Havas' yearning and state of disorientation is intensified by hazy effects and an appealingly chunky and slow groove that wouldn't be out of place on Jessie Ware's Devotion. "Midnight" and "Ghost" likewise wouldn't have the same resonance if merely sung and strummed, while "Never Get Enough" enters discretely but repeatedly veers into a dissonant stomp of lust and vexation. A few moments, like the wistful "Wonderful" and candid closer, are as hushed and restrained as the first album's highlights. The most vivid autobiographical song is "Green & Gold," a standout Lidell collaboration referencing La Havas' growth into an adult who is proud and understanding of her background and identity. This work leaves the debut, impressive as it was, in the dust. ~ Andy Kellman

Product Details

Release Date:	07/31/2015
Label:	Nonesuch / Warner Bros. / Warner Music
UPC:	0825646117789
Rank:	6247

Tracks

1. Unstoppable
2. Green & Gold
3. What You Don't Do
4. Tokyo
5. Wonderful
6. Midnight
7. Grow
8. Ghost
9. Never Get Enough
10. Good Goodbye

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lianne La Havas   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals
Everton Nelson   Violin
Matt Hales   Bass,Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Calina de la Mare   Violin
Ben Castle   Saxophone
Sally Herbert   Strings
Mark Batson   Keyboards
Dave Okumu   Bass,Guitar
Rob Harvey   Trombone
Colin Smith   Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone)
Michael Kearsey   Trombone
Paul Epworth   Bells,Keyboards,Mellotron
Ian Humphries   Violin
Miguel Atwood-Ferguson   Strings
Ian Burdge   Cello
Chris Storr   Trumpet
Clare Finnimore   Viola
Nikolaj Torplarsen   Piano,Mini Moog,Vibraphone
Julia Singleton   Violin
Tom Herbert   Guitar
Mark Brown   Sax (Tenor),Sax (Baritone)
Frances Dewar   Violin
Alison Dods   Violin
Max Baillie   Viola
Claire Orsler   Viola
Leo Taylor   Drums
Oliver Langford   Violin
Trevor Lawrence Jr.   Drums
Di Genius   Bass,Piano,Percussion,Sound Effects
Ben Edwards   Trumpet,Flugelhorn
Marion O. Ross III   Trumpet
Chris Dagger   Bass,Double Bass
"Lucky" Paul Taylor   Drums,Percussion
Howard Lawrence   Keyboards,Vocals (Background)
Tom Walsh   Trumpet
Keenan O'Meara   Vocals (Background)
Chris Worsley   Cello

Technical Credits

Matt Hales   Mixing,Composer,Producer,Recording
Jamie Lidell   Composer,Producer
Mark "Spike" Stent   Mixing
Mark Batson   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Drum Programming
Rupert Christie   Engineer
Shea Taylor   Composer
Stephen McGregor   Composer
Dan Cox   Engineer
Dave Bianco   Engineer
Aaron Fessel   Engineer
Sylvester Stewart   Composer
Paul Epworth   Composer,Producer
Tom Elmhirst   Mixing
Matt Wiggins   Engineer
Stuart Hawkes   Mastering
Chris Tabron   Recording
Joseph Hartwell Jones   Assistant Engineer
Be Hussey   Engineer
Lianne La Havas   Composer
Al Shux   Producer
Ben Baptie   Mixing,Mastering,Recording
Di Genius   Engineer,Producer,Drum Programming
Caleb Laven   Engineer
Sam Dew   Composer
Joe Visciano   Mixing
Geoff Swan   Mixing
Howard Lawrence   Composer
Drew Bang   Mixing