WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

Tracklist: I Do And I Don’t Care; Focus Is Power; Mother; The Curse; Logic, Bitch; Cheers To Me; If Not Now, It’s Soon; In Plain Sight; Lies; 69; What Now; The Deep Blue Okay

There’s a thematic through-line to this album with the final track’s title being referenced in its opening song as Self Esteem sings: ‘We’re not chasing happiness anymore, girls. We’re chasing nothing, the great big still, the deep blue okay – and we’re okay today.’

• Read on for reasons including how Madonna was in the audience for Self Esteem

Life isn’t simple reflects Rebecca Lucy Taylor on this, her 3rd album, and opening track I Do And I Don’t Care ponders on this while reminding 0f her spoken word breakthrough as well as asking: ‘If I’m so empowered, why am I such a coward?’

We bumped into Julie Hesmondhalgh (Punch, Young Vic) outside last month’s triumphant residency at the Duke Of York’s Theatre and it’s the actress’ spoken word appearance on recent single If It’s Not Now, It’s Soon which typifies this sentiment: ‘Something will happen because it’s got to. It’s not just perseverance we need, it’s patience.’

The impression we’re left with by the lyrics is that this woman is complicated, she’s facing mental as well as other challenges but the community of the choir and spirit of ‘You’ll always work it out’ near the album’s end gives us positivity.

It helps that Cheers To Me is an absolute bop and deserves to be the next single. We said of it at the West End album launch gig: ‘It’s a song we’ve never heard heard before but we’re out of our seats and dancing to it because it’s an absolute earworm. We’re expecting it will be number 1 all summer.’

It’s the sound of heartbreak as Self Esteem muses ‘How many trains can I cry on in a lifetime?’ and ‘The worst idea I had was you’ and yet turns it around to toast herself once more, perhaps ironically with the title.

We didn’t know it at the time but Madonna was with us in the audience at that West End album launch residency also which must have been quite the thrill because she’s clearly been an influence on Self Esteem not least on terrifc recent single and song of the month for us 69.

There’s even a song on this album called Mother which seeks to convince its audience of the underrated quality of listening.

The importance of community is re-affirmed throughout by the use of a choir most memorably on lead-off single Focus Is Power which speaks to the need for clarity.

A Complicated Woman is our favourite album of the year so far just shading Welly‘s debut and makes a lot more sense after that launch gig of the year so far which, quite frankly, every act or turn should think about repeating.

The album went in at number 5 in the UK charts this week and its success is no less than Self Esteem deserves.

• Main pictures via Facebook courtesy Self Esteem Tickets
• Have you seen a Self Esteem show before and what did you think of this 1? Let us know what you thought in the comments below
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