Courtney Barnett - Creature Of Habit

On the surface, ‘Creature Of Habit’ is classic Courtney Barnett, full of incisive and introspective lyrics combined with a laidback attitude and sound - a canon to which tracks like ‘Site Unseen’ and ‘Mantis’ are welcome fresh additions. Elsewhere, there are suggestions of new horizons, too: the wistful closing moments of final song ‘Another Beautiful Day’ and the drum machine/synth loops on ‘Same’ (courtesy of Floating Points) are interesting moments of experimentation.

Seemingly, though, these threads weren’t carried any further, left instead as tantalising what-ifs. While Courtney may sing of the necessity of change, there’s a sense here that she hasn’t entirely practiced what she’s preaching. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, given her blueprint is one that undoubtedly works, yet it would be even more exciting to hear her strike out even further - to take the reins off and really run with it. ‘Creature of Habit’ has some great moments, but they’re moments which suggest yet-still-untapped potential.