Sigrid – Sucker Punch
By the end of Sucker Punch, on her long-awaited debut album Sigrid has more than earned her moment, and hopefully many more to come
Nothing in this review matters. Already anointed BBC's Sound of 2018 and possessing a handful of smash singles, Norwegian singer Sigrid is as close as the remnants of the music business has to a surefire hit.
The question then is whether Sigrid wants to be the biggest artist in the world, reeling off smash singles with the hot collaborator of the week or whether she wants to parlay this popularity into something quirkier, more left-field and perhaps on surer ground for the long haul?
Sucker Punch doesn’t quite pick a side in this debate but it’s certainly an assured debut, impeccably written and produced in a way that captures the singer as both youthful and soulful. Her voice is light and airy, with her distinctive vowel sounds giving a fresh spin to even the simplest of lyrics.
The bouncing 808s of Don’t Kill My Vibe tick off pop producers trying to control her while Strangers' crisp synths and massive chorus hit like a monumental sugar rush. Sight of You, meanwhile, functions as paean to both a lover and her audience, swept along on a gigantic string section reminiscent of Coldplay’s Viva La Vida.
The rest of the non-singles are a mixed bag from generic pop bangers like Never Mine to the low-key fingers-on-guitar-strings of Level Up, the gloriously overstuffed Business Dinners and closing piano ballad Dynamite, but by the end of Sucker Punch, Sigrid has more than earned her moment, and hopefully many more to come.
Listen to: Don't Kill My Vibe, Sight of You