release date: May 28, 2021
format: digital
[album rate: 3 / 5] [3,18]
producer: Kele Okereke
label: Kola Records / !K7 - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "Message From the Spirit World" - 4. "How to Beat the Lie Detector" - 6. "Nineveh" - 8. "The Patriots" - 9. "Intention" - 10. "Smalltown Boy" - 11. "From a Place of Love" - 12. "The Heart of the Wave"
5th studio album by Kele (aka Kele Okereke, whose full name is Kelechukwu Rowland Okereke) following 2042 (Nov. 2019). Unlike most of his releases, Kele himself is credited as producer on this, as was also the case on his second album out Trick (Oct. 2014).
Unsurprisingly, the album comes with COVID-19 as a theme and as a starting point for the creation of an album, which offers 13 cuts and a total playing length of just under 50 minutes. Nor is it any surprise that Kele presents us with new styles and a mix of all possible inspirations. It's a near natural habit of his that the basic tone of any new album is from a new perspective - much in the same manner as we've come to understand the soundscape in Bloc Party. On this new release, there is less, or practically no room for alt. dance, funk, or disco. Instead, the album is somewhat subdued without approaching a bare folk rock and singer / songwriter orientation, as to what he cultivated on Fatherland (Oct. 2017). Instead, it's a type of quiet indie pop and alt. folk with the narrative at the center of the compositions. Where 2042 presented us with a series of tales about future English society, The Waves Pt. 1 are stories about Kele's present time. It's about being a parent, living in a relationship, and it's about small and big changes affecting us all.
Nationally, the album has been met by a somewhat lukewarm reception, but that's not something new for Kele personally, nor for his experiences concerning album releases with Bloc Party.
It's not exactly an album of lots of ear bangers nor melodic hooks, and it's generally a more quiet and introspective Kele as opposed to what you might have expected - if that is, you had any expectations whatsoever 'cause if you're already familiar with his music you'd know how little a follow-up ressembles the most recent release. It may appear as a demanding album, where the listener must take an active part, attempting to create his / her / their own understanding. My first impression had me think of it as an off-the-target-album, but it's not necessarily all bad because it requires the attention of its audience. As the title indicates, one should expect The Waves Pt. 2 at some point but then you really never can tell.
Not his best, nor his worst - perhaps better than indicated above...
