FKA twigs - M3LL155X: EP Review

FKA twigs is nothing if not hard working. Hot off the heels of 2014's LP1, one of the most highly celebrated albums of that year, FKA twigs have dropped another depth charge of sensual soul onto the music scene.

Truth be told, this is for all intents and purposes my first real experience with FKA twigs, the nom-du-music of British trip-hop/R&B singer-songwriter Taliah Barnett. I have, again, the excuse of my mission for missing out on the LP1 bandwagon. And when I have given it a few listens, nothing has really stood out to me. Maybe the psychological effects of hype have ruined it for me? 

FKA twigs from Pitchfork's 2014 interview

Well, thankfully I came to this new EP, M3LL155X (which is essentially leetspeak for "Mellissa") with a fresh slate and no expectations, and I'm glad I did. I'm realizing now that FKA twigs' brilliance lies in subtlety, which really is the best way to pull off her genre of music that lives or dies off of its ability to be sensual and sexy. Anything more heavy handed and we'd have people singing about doing it like they're filming in the valley. Oh wait...

Of course, sensual music like this has been done basically since pop music began, and earlier. So, again, FKA twigs' subtlety sonically and emotionally give her an advantage: keeping things fresh and interesting. Experimenting with weird sounds and being seductive usually mix like cheese and chocolate, but the magic of FKA twigs, as exemplified by this EP, is that she somehow knows how to pull it off.

Opener "figure 8" shows exactly what I mean. The musical backdrop sounds like something from an experimental beat producer's beat tape, or even like the sparseness and shadows of Chelsea Wolfe's new Abyss turned electric. Yet it's tempered by the backbone of danceable snare and kick and made perfect by twigs' stellar vocals. Her stunning voice also carries "mothercreep," which could (no, should) be a really weird and... creepy song, but instead sounds like a Sia remixed by Shabazz Palaces and James Blake. Yeah, it's good.

Check out the music video for "glass & patron"

M3LL155X, like anything truly alluring, grabs the attention not so much for what it says but for what it doesn't say. twigs weaves lyrical images that are sometimes obvious, like on "i'm your doll" and others that take some more imagination, like "Everything I hold is wet/ and I've never tasted glass and Patron." Often, her vocals are chopped and skewed, or covered in waves of lush synth, that they're not even intelligible, which again adds to their mystery. Through it all, twigs shows that she knows that in love and music, subversion of expectations is the name of the game. 

Overall, M3LL155X was extremely enjoyable for me. It definitely has me wanting to revisit LP1 and even to eat up her next release, especially since "mothercreep" on such a cliffhanger, like it's building into another song but only climaxes into silence. If you're looking for something catchy and pretty sounding, but also unique and dense, M3LL155X is not a release you want to miss this year. 

OVERALL SCORE: 8.9
FKA twigs – M3LL155X
1. figure 8 2. i'm your doll 3. in time 4. glass & patron 5. mothercreep	O!HTT's COLORFUL SCORING SYSTEM 9-10 Holy. Crap. You must hear this song. One of the best of the year. 7-8 I'm so glad I have ears so that I can listen to this wonderful song. 5-6 Yeah, it's passable. Contributes to the vibe of the album, but not anything to write home about. 3-4 Ehh very mediocre or seriously flawed, there's a lot better music out there, or even on this album. 0-2 Good gravy, why must this song exist? One of the worst things that will enter your ears this year.