The last Lucy Rose album, the transcendent No Words Left was a ‘new’ discovery for me back in 2019 through this very website/podcast. I was immediately drawn to how close and quietly simple that record was and it fast became one of my highlights of that year. Five years later it’s hard to imagine that same artist delivering an album like This Ain’t The Way You Go Out, some of the most dynamic, daring and unexpected music I’ve heard all year. I was a fan before, but this album takes my adoration to a whole new level.
This is an album where I nearly made the cardinal sin of messaging the rest of the Bastards to tell them that Lucy Rose had released the ‘Album of the Year’. It’s not like me to jump the gun like that, so I waited as long as I could – about 4 days – before I finally had to start shouting about This Ain’t The Way You Go Out and the instant grip it made on my life.
From the start of ‘Light As Grass’ this is an album driven by the piano. It has less of an acoustic texture than we’d usually expect from an artist so often labelled as ‘folk’ and in general this could be claimed as a ‘Jazz’ album nearly as much. Musically though this album is so impressively ambitious, ‘Could You Help Me’ features a scuzzy guitar solo, a jazzy piano through line, vocals that soar above it all like a dance track and changing tempos throughout.
The dynamics and changeable nature of the record is what makes it so special. In an instant we are brought back to emotional introspection on ‘Dusty Frames’. The rawness of Lucy’s vocal remains here throughout and it’s hard to imagine someone hearing these songs and not feeling deeply touched. The confidence on display for an artist stepping out of their usual sound is infectious and makes for not a single moment of this album feeling wasted or unnecessary.
That emotion is seen in every lyric here, the album was written following Lucy’s first pregnancy and the experience of a rare form of pregnancy-related osteoporosis. Outside of the tremendous title track it’s not directly detailed on the album, but you can hear a life in these lyrics, years of both joyous experience and difficult times pouring out in each song. ‘Whatever You Want’ swells and expands as it reaches its climax.
While I say this is an emotional record it’s absolutely in an uplifting way. The way my heart swells through the instrumental of Interlude I is through joy and not sadness. Listen to almost dance rhythms and soaring moments of ‘Sail Away’ and tell me you aren’t transported somewhere.
‘Life’s Too Short’ is an obvious standout, so breezy and joyous. It’s not a surprise to hear that this album was produced by Kwes, behind recent songs from Nubya Garcia and Sampha, but more specifically the tremendous hugo album by Loyle Carner. I get the same sense of musicians living through their instruments here as I did on that record and it brings out all of the best qualities in Lucy Rose’s songwriting and lyricism.
I’m writing this review with the album playing (on vinyl no less) as I usually do and my sentence about my favourite track on the album has changed about 6 times. Right now it’s ‘Over When It’s Over’ but it’s a sign of how outstanding this album is that it could be any of these songs. ‘The Racket’ is another song that fully deserves this label. The instrumentation and talent on display throughout is awe inspiring and it’s honestly mad to think back to what I enjoyed about No Tears Left and think that the same artist would eventually make music like this.
I can see Lucy Rose’s voice, her lyrics and her musicality ending up as my favourite thing I will write about in 2024. I mentioned something similar when I reviewed the also fantastic Brittany Howard album a few weeks ago, but I hear the same mature confidence throughout this album. A ridiculously talented musician delivering their best work when it feels like they needed it the most, don’t be surprised when you see Lucy Rose’s name on the Mercury Prize shortlist in July.
Picky Bastards 
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