Amaarae has finally unveiled her sophomore effort with the release of her intergalactic pop album Fountain Baby. Across 14 stunning tracks, the Ghanian American artist harnesses all the frenetic elements of her multi-genre influences into a kinetically futuristic vision of a pop star untethered from trite uniformity — or gravity itself. Whether you’ve been eagerly awaiting her next offering after being hypnotized by the grandiosity of her debut album THE ANGEL YOU DON’T KNOW, or just now discovering her, you will delight in the sonic ebullience that radiates from this collection of songs.
Fountain Baby opens with the lush and sensual luxuriance of “Angels In Tibet,” one of the many tracks that revel in Amaarae’s ability to slip so elegantly between rhythmic Afropop and amorously confessional R&B. The relative ease and seamlessness with which those genre fluctuations occur represent her creation of an entire niche all her own. “Co-Star,” an anthemic roll call of energizingly fierce femininity rooted in star signs, sees Amaarae going supernova as she surfs its dreamily rapid melody.
While tracks like “Big Steppa” — a moody dive that mingles atmospheric elements of hip-hop, alt-rock, and soulful instrumentals — and “Wasted Eyes” find the artist reckoning with desire and growth. The music video for the latter track was directed by Lauren Dunn and sees Amaarae infiltrating a futuristic fight club and giving an elegant beatdown in the process.
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Never letting up, the back half of Fountain Baby is no less refreshingly dynamic. But here the songs grow more introspective and the soundscapes more ambitious. There is the ethereal resonance of “Sex, Violence, Suicide” which finds Amaarae tenderly caressing the edges of ecstasy and despair. Or the driving electro-pop rush of “Sociopathic Dance Queen” that thrums and oscillates with such gleaming soul. The album ends as sumptuous as it began, savoring her own fluidity on the passionately tender “Water From Wine,” and entangling all her multitudes within the earnest crescendo of spiritual pleas and shrieking riffs that finish “Come Home To God.”
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Visit Amaarae on their website and Instagram to stay updated on new releases and tour announcements.
Amaarae tour
9/12 – Melkweg – Amsterdam, Netherlands
9/13 – Lido – Berlin, Germany
9/15 – La Cigale – Paris, France
9/20 – Roundhouse – London, United Kingdom
10/6 – Zilker Metropolitan Park – Austin, Texas
10/13 – Zilker Metropolitan Park – Austin Texas
Words: Steven Ward
Listen to Fountain Baby the new album from Amaarae below!
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