Poliça - Shulamith

Poliça’s debut of last year was an exquisite offering of darkly polyrhythmic pop-weirdness, fused with auto-tuned vocals that permeated into the entire blend like couronne sweet bread bursting with fruity tang. If ‘Give You the Ghost’ had been a show-stopper on the Great British Bake-off, Mary Berry would probably have called it ‘scrummy’. This follow-up polishes up on the central successes of the debut, and makes them even more irresistible and organic.

This time round, Mary Berry would’ve asked for Poliça to scribble down the recipe, because ‘Shulamith’ carries forward all those cohesive elements, and manages to take them to the next level. The drums sound more physical and alive against all those synthisised elements, and it’s this change that’s integral to this record’s appeal. It sounds far less like an album that could’ve been made on a laptop, and far more gritty, hard-hitting, exciting. ‘Shulamith’ is full of life and energy, and it’s more or less impossible not to get propelled along with it.

Leaneagh’s vocals are still manipulated and tender at the same time, but they also have a greater focus about them. On ‘Warrior Lord’ they emerge out of the reverb, with all the stealthily attack of a synth-pop ninja. ‘Very Cruel’ starts life with an erupting, squelching sawtooth. It’s like The Knife flown over to Minnesota, as a melodic hook meets trap horn stabs, and the brash, off-kilter pulse of an all-night party in a stark concrete-floored warehouse.

‘Shulamith’ has infectious, memorable melody at its very core – and Poliça clearly know how to make tunes that burrow into eardrums. Alone, that would make for a decent album, but the edge comes from the slightly disorientating presentation. It skulks coolly through the gloom amid tumbling drums.

It feels darker, somehow, deliciously shadowey. This isn’t a departure at all, but when Poliça’s trajectory has so much potential, hurtling forward is the best possible direction to take. Existing since 2011, this band is still very young, but ‘Shulamith’ is their second excellent record. That’s no mean feat. If Poliça can produce output of this quality in two years, then the future is looking exciting.