Loraine James – Gentle Confrontation

Gentle Confrontation's title track opens the record with a cauldron of trembling strings that wouldn’t be out of place on Building Something Beautiful For Me, James’ homage to late US composer Julius Eastman. However, it doesn't take long before her trademark angular beats bring the album to life. This dialogue between past and present continues on Glitch the System (Glitch Bitch 2), in which James revisits the opening track of her 2019 album For You and I, and steers its anxiety-inducing beats in a more mature direction. Elsewhere the misty-eyed guitars of One Way Ticket To the Midwest (Emo) recall the math-rock structures and emo-inspired textures of James’ ambient project Whatever the Weather.

Just like her 2021 record Reflection, about the loneliness of lockdown, Gentle Confrontation’s most interesting moments are those where James’ voice takes centre stage. Tracks like Cards With the Grandparents, a spoken word piece concerned with ageing and familial love and 2003, about the loss of her father, sees James reopening old wounds as she confronts her deepest fears; a process that has resulted in her most honest and reflective work to date.

Listen to: I DM U, Déjà Vu (ft. RiTchie), 2003