Never Stopped Loving You by Pink Shabab

On his 2019 debut album Ema By The Sea, Joseph Carvell lamented his hopeless love life in nine stripped-back odes to mistakes made, each built on a strong bassline with a drum machine for accompaniment. All good, but his alluring, spoken-style of singing was the clincher, sort of introverted punk. New album Never Stopped Loving You picks up where he left off.

On Ema, there was a distinct yet understated element of Disco but on Never he's comfortably slipped up a gear into full-on Disco Pop mode. The productions now carry an increased vibrancy, less lo-fi, not so stripped-back. On Show Your Love he goes balls-out with the high-hat lifts. On San Junipero, the force of Disco is unstoppable, the bouncing bass like Hot Chip at their most commercially aware. On Let Go, the manic claps carry a defiant 80's vibe. It's a feel-good album in the tradition of the best sad disco songs, balancing upbeat rhythms with matters of burden and loss.