Allie X - Cape God

‘Cape God’ might well be Allie X’s most ambitiously pop release to date, but it lacks any edge she’s previously shown. ‘June Gloom’ and ‘Rings A Bell’ are both fun, meticulously-produced gems, but sonically it all has an inoffensive sheen. The tongue-in-cheek ‘Super Duper Party People’ perfectly displays the Canadian’s ability to create a refreshing take on what could otherwise be by-numbers pop, and ‘Devil I Know’ packs huge, layered melodies and a much-needed moodier side, but the latter also suffers heavily from sounding awfully similar to Arctic Monkeys’ ‘Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?’. There are undeniably beautiful and anthemic moments here, but on the whole it falls short. ‘CollXtion I’ posed Allie as an exciting new songwriter, but this record fails to push boundaries in the same way.