by Jo Higgs

Off the back of their acclaimed debut album, Girlhood unleash 4AM. A typically gorgeous neo-soul pop tune, the infectious drumming ensures danceability despite its essentially balladic nature. The most subtle dustings of quality production elevate an already vital performance to reach increasingly vibrant movements. 

Tessa Cavanna’s voice is flawless – slipping from a full and rich sound to gorgeous half-voice falsetto with seeming effortlessness, as she unravels a tale of late-night longing. The majesty of the duo’s production, as well as the apparent connectivity with an active nightlife, makes it even more surprising that the advent of their musical collaborating took place upon a narrowboat docked in a canal. While Girlhood undoubtedly provide a growing stream of beauty, it’s not of the pastoral sense one might figure from their beginnings. 

Over the years following Burial’s Untrue, it’s been dubbed as a melancholy tale of the post-club experience, or an uncomfortable bus-ride through the temporarily dead streets of London. 4AM is an uplifting alternative. The clubs have closed, and the danger of a post-adrenaline crash is lingering, but someone’s found a mellow flat party nearby to unwind in. The emotive strength is an overwhelming feeling; hence most people lie upon and around a melting sofa more than happy to bathe in each other’s warmth, but there are just a few likeably strange stragglers that refuse to stop dancing. 

4AM is a treat of a tune. It’s rare to find a leftover from any album that’s as special as this, but that seems to be the way of things with Girlhood.

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