Lianne La Havas, Blood - album review

Download: Unstoppable; Green and Gold; What You Don’t Do

Blood is front-loaded: I can’t think of another album that follows such a relentlessly downward course, all but giving up the ghost completely on the insipid closer “Good Goodbye”.

But the opening three songs are aces: “Unstoppable” surfs in on fluttering chimes and aptly nebulous cooing before a languid bass lope heralds a cosmic love croon, La Havas “floating through the darkest reaches of space” on swirling strings. The Caribbean epiphany “Green and Gold” then finds her “looking at my life unfold, dreaming of the green and gold” over a gorgeous rolling shuffle groove created with Jamie Lidell.

Another rolling groove, the single “What You Don’t Do”, muses engagingly on faith, fidelity and romantic confidence. But thereafter things subside into a limp parade of Sade-esque boudoir soul and relationship reflections that, pleasant as they are, gradually release their hold on one’s attentions.