Bleep

Jenny Hval returns, three years on from the outstanding Blood Bitch, with her seventh studio LP. The Practice Of Love finds the Norwegian artist at once streamlining her music-making and also stretching things out a little.

A few of these tracks are some of Hval’s most direct (dare we say poppiest?) compositions to date. Hval is no stranger to a good tune of course - Blood Bitch had its moments where her songwriting instincts took hold - but there is a song-first focus to entries like ‘High Alice’ that is more pronounced than it has been previously. This new approach works well for Hval, allowing her to ground her Lynchian reveries in groove and melody. It also creates space for new sounds and styles to be brought into the fold - the pounding beat of ‘Six Red Cannas’ straddles the divide between techno, witch house and EBM while ‘Accident’ nods to the digital overloads of Blanck Mass.

The Practice Of Love also contains space for Hval to try out new things. For the first time in a few releases we find her frequently calling on collaborators, namely Vivian Wang, Laura Jean Englert, and Felicia Atkinson. Hval’s lyrics have also evolved in an intriguing manner. Whereas previous records often saw Hval confronting matters head-on, some of the cuts here adopt a more passive and considered lyrical tone.

Jenny Hval’s The Practice Of Love is a great example of liminal pop music - Gothic, ethereal and seductive.