Bless Olly Alexander. Its not easy to be the newly-minted emblem of queer activism in mainstream pop, while also keeping a legion of teenage girls giddily bopping along to your every tune. Doing this while charting a credible creative trajectory that will ensure longevity is a heavy lift, even for the most seasoned and confident of artists. Emboldened by considerable swagger, the talented but still evolving 31-year-old takes a bold swing at all three on the third Years & Years album, Night Call, a trend-savvy dance-pop collection,with results that succeed and confound in equal measure.<\/p>\n
After the 2021 departure of Mikey Goldsworthy and Emre Trkmen, Y&Y is no longer a band, but rather a brand for Alexanders solo musings. Its a wise move that not only allows him to trade in on the established familiarity of Y&Y, but also to conjure an image that matches the sonic bombast of Night Call with Alexander cleverly casting himself as the charismatic, larger-than-life frontman.<\/p>\n
This album marks Alexanders return to recording after a four-year break that included starring in the acclaimed television drama Its A Sin, which told the story of Aidss impact on 1980s Britain. Its a role that merged his sizeable pop following of over nine million monthly Spotify listenerswith a larger audience. Y&Y was formed in 2010, coming into prominence in 2015 with the chart topping album Communion, which was the years fastest-selling debut by a band. It spawned the No. 1 smash King, as well as Shine, which peaked at No 2 on the charts. The 2018 follow-up, Palo Santo, was a top 10 success that included the hit singles Sanctify and If Youre Over Me.<\/p>\n
It seems that the experience of fronting Its A Sin has matured Alexanders lyrical point-of-view. Songs such as the stand-outs Immaculate and Make It Out Alive meditate on the experiences of hedonism and sex through a knowing lens of consequence and danger. On Communion and Palo Santo, elements of sexuality often felt like extraneous interludes of titillation.<\/p>\n
Here, Alexander is palpably aware that his community of LGBTQ+ people are now paying close attention. The margin for getting it wrong with a misstep is smaller, and hints of timidity can be felt on the notably self-conscious tracks Sweet Talker and Crave, both of which employ empty-calorie clichs instead of the primal seduction that both songs imply. That said, when he gets it right, as he does on Reflections, with its cynical negotiation of a one-night stand, Alexander proves his skill as a writer and vocalist of formidable power.<\/p>\n
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Years & Years, Night Call, review: Olly Alexander turns the hedonism up loud - Telegraph.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Bless Olly Alexander. Its not easy to be the newly-minted emblem of queer activism in mainstream pop, while also keeping a legion of teenage girls giddily bopping along to your every tune. Doing this while charting a credible creative trajectory that will ensure longevity is a heavy lift, even for the most seasoned and confident of artists. Continue reading