We tend to think of Ed Sheeran and Drake when it comes to acts who can whoosh high in the charts with a single every time. Some people seem to have the knack of the streaming era, while other former Top 40 mainstays (hi, Madonna!) struggle.
Actually, as with most new technology, maybe it’s the young folk who understand it best. Mabel McVey, at 23, is only releasing her debut album today but has been doing great with her singles for two years already. Most of them — collaborations, as is the fashion — are lined up as bonus tracks at the end here, including Finders Keepers with Kojo Funds, My Lover with Not3s and Ring Ring with Jax Jones.
The album itself, though held together with an intro, an interlude and an outro that frame the other 11 songs, feels like a collection of yet more radio-friendly hits rather than anything deeper. The music is streamlined electronic pop, fine-tuned for instant catchiness, with some edgy swearing on FML and a shift into more mature, smoky R&B on Stckhlm Syndrome.
There’s an international feel for maximum worldwide appeal, from the flamenco handclaps on the energetic Selfish Love to lines that are easy to sing along with whatever your first language, such as “Put it da-da-down da-da-down” on the latest single, Mad Love.
Almost everything would sit seamlessly on any Hot Hits-type playlist. It’s only late on, when she sings OK (Anxiety Anthem) that the listener finally gets a better sense of the real Mabel.
