Review: On ‘CAPRISONGS,’ FKA Twigs is Reborn
The British artist adopts a trap aesthetic on her playful new mixtape.
(Atlantic Records)
by Yas Akdag
This story was originally published on New York University’s Washington Square News.
FKA twigs’ latest release, “CAPRISONGS,” is phoenix-like — on the 17-track mixtape, the British artist-dancer-wushu-sword-fighter is reborn. Strong, sexy, confident and commanding, with “CAPRISONGS,” FKA twigs marks a shift from her previous album “MAGDALENE.”
Writing after a breakup with everyone’s favorite vampire, Robert Pattinson, as well as fibroid-removal surgery, FKA twigs was broken and vulnerable on “MAGDALENE” — but she was beginning to heal. You can hear this in her quivering soprano, most striking on songs like “cellophane,” the lead single from the album. “And I just want to feel you’re there/And I don’t want to have to share our love/I try, but I get overwhelmed/When you’re gone, I have no one to tell,” she sang over sparse, unhurried piano. The album was a work of art — it was ethereal, almost inaccessible through its carefully crafted songwriting, production and vocal performance.
On “CAPRISONGS,” FKA twigs spins 180 degrees, as if she wants to give listeners whiplash. The mixtape’s first track, “ride the dragon” sets the tone. “Hey, I made you a mixtape,” she whispers during its slow, quiet intro, before a trap beat comes in, laden with gritty bass and 16th-note hi-hats.
Read the rest of the story at Washington Square News.