The ex lead singer of legendary band Moloko released her third studio album last year, titled Hairless Toys. The album was experimental, as everyone expected from the queen of art-pop. Roisin Murphy alacrity for innovation and experimentation is her forte. She is always challenging herself, and the audience adores watching her explore hidden niches of her psyche.
Only a year after the mentioned Hairless Toys, Roisin releases her fourth LP called Take Her Up To Monto. What I can tell you right away is that it’s even better than the previous. The title of the album adverts to the Irish folk song that Roisin’s father sang to her when she was just a little girl. Obviously, there is a moment of nostalgia for the childhood and a combat with the past. The producer of the album is Eddie Stevens, her long-time creative partner.
Take Her Up To Monto brings us everything we love about Roisin – experimental pop, art-pop, dance, jazz elements, downtempo and seductive vocal. It is a mature and brilliantly realized concept, worthy of queen of queers. The sound is somewhere in between Ruby Blue and Hairless Toys.
The experimental sound is ubiquitous from the first to the very last track. It’s as If she succeeded to haul herself to the last atom of her creative flow. Still, Roisin managed to stay placid and decent. She always does things with peculiar style.
Her vocal is how I imagine life without any stress. Lyrics are more mature than ever before. There is sarcasm and healthy aspersion; there are raw confessions and emotional expressions, but never intrusion. Roisin keeps her distance.
The biggest hit from the album is Ten Miles High and it sound like Moloko at the top of their game. Electronic matrix is prominent on the record, especially in Romantic Comedy and Thoughts Wasted. Mastermind is the subtle intro, structured in a way that makes you wonder whether this is a pop album or fully experimental one.
The album is closed by Sitting and Counting, a ballade that infatuates and leaves you wanting more. Take Her Up To Monto, we want you to take us back there, again and again.
