Blackest Ever Black’s leading lady soldiers forward as the slowly evaporating label continues its painful croak (going on 2 years now) - here she slips into true DIY form, stepping out on her own freshly minted Kallista imprint (we almost had money on her heading to Sacred Bones, glad we didn’t!) for this exquisite sophomore LP after relocating to London from Berlin (from Melbourne). Not gonna lie, we weren’t really dying to have this, but that’s only because we’re still not sick of You Know What It’s Like - one of those records that continues to feel fresh despite being 3+ years old and sounding way older - plus Carla slipped out a killer albeit super weird and slippery LP with her F Ingers project in the time since. This one’s more straightforwardly pop than You Know but still firmly rooted in witchy art rock and dubwise post-kraut experimental traditions. The songs are presented with newfound sonic clarity; even the instrumental passages are more concise, no more chewed up tape loops and waterlogged murk. Opener “No Trace” gets right to the point with Carla’s all-business falsetto floating over a catchy picked bassline and MIDI flute stabs. Lead single “So Much Better” finds her even more comfortable, taunting her former lover: “so if i think about the time we spent together / I’m happy that you’re still the same and I am so much better.” Augustus Pablo meets Midori Takada on “Leaving For Japan”; the funereal “Heart Of Hearts” instrumental and soaring Nico-in-space “Took A Long Time” are other high water marks. Black vinyl pressing with printed insert, recommended.

• black vinyl pressing
• printed insert
• music label: Kallista Records 2019

reviewed by naffi sandwich 11/2019