Boasting the talents and a depth of spirit of an artist twice her age, I Predict A Graceful Expulsion is a majestic powerhouse of a career starter.
All this might not catch you on your first few listens; her lyrics are the kind that seep in after repeated listens.
What elevates I Predict a Graceful Expulsion above pure comfort food, however, is how it subtly tugs against the big, major-network-drama payoff for which it feels custom-built.
What we have here is the molding of a true songwriter instead of a fleeting star.
If the focus on ‘I Predict A Graceful Expulsion’ is sharp then its scope is overly broad, focusing in on vague sentiments that leave you fond, but never in love.
At times, I Predict A Graceful Expulsion can be slightly one-paced and one-trick, but it's a trick attractive and earnest enough to warrant repeated listens.
This stunning collection of sparse folk-tinged modern blues tracks which the vocalist, Al Spx, born Ladan Hussein in Ontario, Canada, the daughter of Somalian immigrants, has proclaimed ‘doom soul’. Having relocated to London to concentrate on her music, Hussein first caused stirs with the release of the nostalgia-laden single, ‘Holland’ in 2011. As one reviewer notes, Hussein on this debut album manages to delicately balance drama and understatement with a voice ... read more
Ladan Hussein has some slow-dragged stories in her pocket and some basic, urban-folk melodies in her hands.
Let her clap them together at her will.