release date: Nov. 8, 2019
format: digital (16 x File, FLAC)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: Gethin Pearson
label: Kola / !K7 - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "Jungle Bunny" - 3. "Let England Burn" - 4. "St. Kaepernick Wept" (4 / 5) - 6. "My Business" - 7. "Ceiling Games" - 9. "Between Me and My Maker" - 13. "Catching Feelings" - 16. "Backburner"
4th studio release by Kele, who once again have returned to stand by his first name only, in contrast to Fatherland (Oct. 2017), which was released under the name Kele Okereke. There has now been room for a total of sixteen tracks and a total playing length of 61 minutes. The album follows four months after he and the band Bloc Party released the live album Silent Alarm Live (Jul. 2019) recorded during the band's European tour in 2018.
Stylistically, Kele is back in dance mode with an uptempo release using various electronic styles as alt. dance, neo-soul, funk, and disco mixed up with indie pop, and a sound which isn't far from that of Bloc Party. Furthermore, he's more political than heard before, and the title apparently alludes to a collection of tracks revolving an image of England in the year 2042. The album received fine reviews in the UK but failed to chart on the albums chart list.
2042 is another fine example of Kele's musical skills, where he picks from all sorts of genres and styles to produce his own personal mix. In that way, stylistically, and in terms of form, the album reminds me somewhat of his solo debut The Boxer (2010) without speaking of mere recycling. At times in the past, Kele hasn't always been able to hit the target with his solo releases but with 2042, I think he's back on track as the album simply appears to be his best and clearly most exciting album since his debut and it's therefore worthy of a recommendation.
