More about: Rhye

Home has probably never been as familiar as it is right now. Love it or hate it, after being homebound for what at present feels like an eternity, the word “home” has gained about a million new connotations. Appropriately, alt-R&B artist, producer and songwriter, Rhye returns with a stunning sonic interpretation of the place and its meaning on his fourth full-length, and although we may have some less positive thoughts about the place home at times when we are unable to come and go as we like, we only have praise for the album. 

After the release of the 2013 debut Woman, Rhye’s Michael Milosh spent most of his time on the road playing an uncountable number of live shows all across the world. The nomadic lifestyle eventually led to Milosh settling down in LA after longing for something more permanent. He describes it as “this idea of creating a safe place that's not just conducive to creativity, but one that’s truly an anchor point from which to make art and be creative.”

From this anchor point, Rhye has brought us a stunning collection of songs that draws you in and instantaneously wraps around you with a genuine sense of warmth and security. Introductions are given on the track ‘Come In Closer’ with round metronomic keys, disco-infused basslines and signature strings, all effortlessly married with Rhye’s blissfully distinctive falsetto. With the words “come in closer” echoingly sung throughout, the track almost feels like a hand reaching out through an open door.

The record is bound together beautifully by ‘Intro’ and ‘Outro’, two intimate and heartfelt acapella pieces sung by the Danish National Girls’ Choir. In a state of almost a naïve bliss, they perfectly capture the essence of the album like a rare, limited edition, hardback cover of your favourite book found hidden away somewhere in a second-hand bookshop. A similar intimacy can be heard, this time initially married with earnest brass arrangements, when the choir makes a fleeting appearance mid-album at the end of ‘Hold You Down’.  

Sonically, the album does all that one could hope a Rhye album would do. Intelligently layered with sophisticated string and orchestral arrangements, song after song gently rocks the listener back and forth in a soundscape of nocturnal familiarity. Where in the past Rhye has been surrounded by a veil of mystery and anonymity, Home feels like a more open and inviting record, and with a strong tint of funk and disco that can be heard throughout the album in the strings and baselines, Home also feels richer and warmer in its sound. There are themes and melodies that come and go fluidly, with moments of brilliancy like ‘Black Rain’s heavily disco influenced ascending sting into the almost euphoric scream first heard at 01:12 of the same song. Despite all its ornaments, the album never loses its sense of soothing minimalism.

Home is more than the place where you live, more than the walls surrounding you and the roof over your head – Rhye has captured its essence.

Home arrives 22 January via Loma Vista/Concord.

More about: Rhye