Devotion
Details
LP / Format
Domino / Label
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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Tirzah and Levi have created something fiercely unique, relatable and of the moment; one of the most crucial pop records of the year.
90
Tirzah has made 11 raw, honest, and beautifully unusual pop songs that will remain with you whether you like it or not, bringing you back time and time again, motivated by your devotion to this record.
90
In the sparseness of its haze, Devotion feels ephemeral, like a photo taken at golden hour that's just starting to fade.
90
On Devotion, she cordons off her own corner of modern Rn’B with a statement destined to become a genre staple.
85
The album at once presents a ghastly, stuttering vision for the standard love song and tugs at the same heartstrings that R&B has always attacked. Across 39 gorgeous and addicting minutes, it never lets go.
83
Tirzah Mastin’s debut album Devotion is a compelling vision of what imperfect pop music can be—joyful in both sound and feeling precisely because both seem so out-of-step and asymmetrical.
80
Making magic out of minimal patterns – with the help of old friend and producer Mica Levi – the singer spins alluring stories of intimacy and love.
80
It's this skill at hypnotizing and disarming her audience that makes Devotion such a captivating reintroduction to Tirzah.
80
Tirzah’s Devotion, these 14 numeral moments, sketch a way toward communicating loving better.
78
It's striking how simple and affecting Devotion is as a whole. At a time when so much music is political and intellectualized, Tirzah's sincerity and candor is a breath of fresh air.
75
For her most intriguing album to date, Tirzah mixes experimental electronic tones with powerful R&B soul for an album that sounds like few others. Though it may feel like a massive and daunting step now, we’ll likely be looking back to this album as a turning point in the genre later.
70
‘Devotion’ is a bold statement of intent from a young artist who already sounds as if she’s carved out her own niche.
70
Taking inspiration from Al Green, Barry White and D’Angelo, produced with her long-term friend and collaborator Micachu, Tirzah manages to create a warped ‘90s R&B record with a soulful core and enough electronic dissonance for the modern age.
65
Much of the music on Devotion is built off of loops, but each one delivers a unique strangeness.
50
Devotion lacks the clarity and urgency of Tirzah's earlier work.
I liked the minimal production and the lyrics on a lot of this. The repetitiveness and similar production on some tracks made it a little boring but a really enjoyable debut in general.
Edit: It keeps growing for me. Devotion the track is so gorgeous and the record is a lot more detailed than I thought
Faves: Do You Know, Basic Need, Go Now
Edit: It keeps growing for me. Devotion the track is so gorgeous and the record is a lot more detailed than I thought
Faves: Do You Know, Basic Need, Go Now
Uncountable loops in some chorus, sweet and soft voice, good songwriting and a dreamy atmosphere which makes the sound raw,"Devotion" remains in a totally level of honesty.
2018 AOTY #35
This is one of two very good British R&B albums named Devotion that has come out this decade. Tirzah's style is much more subdued, and, dare I say, amateurish compared to Jessie Ware's, but she leans so far into the imperfections of her voice and the minimalism of her songwriting that she's created an approach to R&B wholly unlike that of anyone else. Tirzah's biggest coup, though, is in choosing the brilliant Mica Levi (apparently a longtime friend) as Devotion's primary ... read more
This is one of two very good British R&B albums named Devotion that has come out this decade. Tirzah's style is much more subdued, and, dare I say, amateurish compared to Jessie Ware's, but she leans so far into the imperfections of her voice and the minimalism of her songwriting that she's created an approach to R&B wholly unlike that of anyone else. Tirzah's biggest coup, though, is in choosing the brilliant Mica Levi (apparently a longtime friend) as Devotion's primary ... read more
It takes real courage to express devotion with the minimalistic use of loops and, for the time being, Tirzah succeeds in putting aside the essentials by betting on the ephemeral.
The garage rooted production is nice, moody and clean but the looping results in many tracks becoming repetitive listens as most are structured very similarly. Tirzah's casual vocal style can work both for and against her, sometimes fitting perfectly with the tone set by the production but other times failing to provide some needed animation when the instrumentals start to feel repeated. Still a bunch of good tracks on here, Basic Need and Affection are the standouts for the dedication to the ... read more
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More Lists
Track List
- Fine Again
- Do You Know
- Gladly
- Holding On
- Affection
- Basic Need
- Guilty
- Devotion (feat. Coby Sey)
- Go Now
- Say When
- Reach
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Added on: May 4, 2018