Jessie Ware - Say You Love Me

‘Say You Love Me’ ticks every box required in terms of being a massive single from a record that by all intentions looks set to be similarly massive. Even ‘Tough Love’’s lead, title-track - despite its subtleties - didn’t stray from being a straight-down-the-line number that could sit pretty on just about any radio playlist across the country. This latest, BenZel-produced number is an emotional juggernaut. It’s a dinner party soundtrack, a late night bloomer and a cafe companion rolled into one, and that’s the strange magic of Jessie - she manages to transverse the traditional, boring boundaries that tag onto the everyday artist. ‘Say You Love Me’ is a potential chart-topper in waiting, make no mistake. But its intricacies are just as fascinating. There’s the sound of a hand-clapping choir in the background (perhaps from Ware’s beloved district of London, Brixton), distant space-like sirens too. And that’s all on top of an acoustic chord sequence that won’t do anyone a disservice, regardless of where it winds up.

Tying it all together is a sense of nagging uncertainty. This isn’t a bog-standard love song, borrowing from the diary notes of twenty-somethings. “Slowly, slowly, you unfold me, but do you know me at all?” is the most poignant line. Simple on the outside but burrowed in depth, this could easily be her biggest single yet.