Second albums are often feared by artists if their debut has been particularly successful.
Will it live up to the success of the first album? Will fans still be enamoured with the artist waiting for new music to come? Will the new music be worthy of being included in playlists around the globe?
I’m sure Dua Lipa and her team have all worried about this throughout the process of creating her new album ‘Future Nostalgia’ at some point, but thankfully the result shows she needn’t have worried; she has what it takes to smash it out of the park.
‘Future Nostalgia’ affirms that pop is not dead – it’s just been waiting for its saviour. And Dua Lipa is that saviour.
The album continues on from where Dua’s debut left off and looks to both the past and future. It feels very 2020, but it also feels like it could be listenable in 10 years time or 10 years ago. It honestly feels timeless.
Its disco and funk vibes feel fresh and just what we need at a time like this – something uplifting and full of life.
She’s worked with a collection of amazing writers and producers to capture the sound here and it has really worked well.
Some well-known people like Stuart Price and Camille Purcelle have been involved, but other lesser known but no less prolific writers like writing team The Monsterz and The Strangerz or Alexandra Tamposi have also contributed. Between everyone involved, the quality is high and talent has been well-harnessed.
It’s hard to call out specific songs since the overall quality across this album is ridiculously high.
Some of the standouts include lead singles ‘Don’t Start Now’ and ‘Physical’ for their listenability as much as their powerful lyrics.
I also really enjoyed ‘Cool’ and ‘Hallucinate’ because they were catchy and I could play them while reading a book, cleaning the house, going out for a drive or (back when we could) dance to them.
Let’s also mention the samples that pop up throughout that are clever and honestly just add to the charm of the songs here (‘Love Again’ is brilliantly cool and I love how the sample has been used).
Overall, there’s an abundance of life on ‘Future Nostalgia’.
Dua Lipa isn’t holding back on album number two. She’s come out swinging and achieved a pretty well perfect pop album.
Artists often record dozens of songs for inclusion so I wonder what else she’s recorded that missed the cut.
It’s what’s not included here that’s just as exciting as what has been.
As one of this era’s most exciting pop artists, I cannot wait to see Dua Lipa continue to dominate charts and playlists while winning the world over with her pop prowess.
VERDICT : 5/5.
MUST LISTEN : Physical, Cool, Love Again, Boys Will Be Boys.
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