Albums to watch

Mean Love

Sinkane

Mean Love

Third album from Sudanese-born, New York-based Ahmad Gallub merges Afro-funk, soul and krautrock

ADM rating[?]

7.1

Label
Republic of Music
UK Release date
01/09/2014
US Release date
09/09/2014
  1. 10.0 |   The Guardian

    Each track, often on the theme of soured love, has a simplicity and a directness that is characteristic of the best pop
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  2. 9.0 |   Exclaim

    Manages to create a sense of romanticism without ever being overtly emotional, with straightforward lyrics that somehow remain affecting
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  3. 8.3 |   Consequence Of Sound

    Mean Love is all about precision, be it in the form of a buttery vocal hook, an elastic bass line courtesy of Ish Montgomery, or a poignant lyric co-written with Greg Lofaro
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  4. 8.0 |   NME

    Along with his collaborators (including David Byrne and Damon Albarn), he has neatly stitched a tapestry of musical cultures into a cohesive, convincing whole
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  5. 8.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    Mean Love is easy listening as it is engaging. Where some tracks edge towards lounge territory, on the most part, this is a an album that surely won’t sink
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  6. 8.0 |   The FT

    A hypnotically shimmering slow jam
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  7. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    Gallab isn’t afraid to be adventurous when it comes to mixing and matching, and Mean Love is all the better for such an approach
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  8. 7.2 |   Pitchfork

    Cements his reputation as a capable musical wanderer willing to engage with a variety of sounds
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  9. 7.0 |   All Music

    Stellar production and heartfelt songwriting keep the album engaging and beautiful at every turn
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  10. 7.0 |   Loud And Quiet

    Doesn’t swing quite as eccentrically between styles, instead opting for a sound that blends funk and pop with Gallab’s unusual, high-pitched soulful vocals
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  11. 7.0 |   Rolling Stone

    Gallab doesn't stick genres into songs so much as he inhabits each one
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  12. 6.0 |   PopMatters

    Mean Love never fails to be smooth, and it displays a particular kind of open ear. For some, that will be enough
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  13. 6.0 |   The Observer

    Groove pop full of psychedelic repetition and sinuous inflections from his family's native Sudan and elsewhere
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  14. 4.5 |   Beardfood

    The funk has been dialled down in favour of odd Americana, a suit that doesn't quite fit our nasal Sudanian
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  15. 4.0 |   The Skinny

    There's a polish to Mean Love which is a sharp contrast to the grittier funk of its predecessor, the sum being a less ambitious outing overall
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Sinkane: Mean Love

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