Omar Apollo - God Said No

“I don’t see you anymore / But the words you left me are always in my ears / Always in my tears,” confesses Omar Apollo – who has the distinct ability to make first-love wounds feel as open and fleshy as the day they were made – over the soulful, swaying percussion of ‘Dispose of Me’. This, his second record, is no less smoothly lovelorn and unrequited, no less steeped in kaleidoscopic, opulent anti-pop-meets-R&B than his acclaimed debut, but it is undoubtedly more defined in its purpose, and more astute in its ability to touch beyond the boundaries of genre amid glittering heartbreak. Narratively, ‘God Said No’ puts Omar at the mercy of fate, but atop waves of transcendental R&B, dream pop and soul, it’s his own voice that becomes divine self-assurance in the face of abandonment. It’s meticulous in its direction, flitting through romantic and sonic states that reveal a willingness to suffer, and this simultaneous poetic and diaristic lucidity serves as a settling into the unexpected when it works against his heart. In contradiction, however, each track is beautifully light and bright – ranging from some of the most opulent and infatuated dream-pop of this year (see standout ‘Drifting’, with its MIKA-like chorus); to post-R&B comparative to the likes of Christine and the Queens’ latest (see the angelic closer ‘Glow’, an expected evolutionary step from the sci-fi R&B of Omar’s 2023 EP) – culminating in an infatuating promise to persevere and make a transformative Sad Boy Summer from the affair. Supported by a surprise confessional from friend and actor Pedro Pascal, ‘God Said No’ is profound and romantic, decadent and suave, and as ever, Omar is at the helm.