SLAVE TO THE BEAT
The Independent|January 24, 2025
On 'Eusexua', her defiantly weird paean to the Prague rave scene, FKA twigs bends vital new electronic shapes, writes Helen Brown, while rapper Central Cee's debut delivers
Helen Brown
SLAVE TO THE BEAT

"I'm tired of messing up my life with overcomplicated moments and sticky situations," whispers FKA twigs halfway through her third album, Eusexua. It’s an intimate confession, delivered as though the 37-year-old’s lips are brushing against the mic. Throughout the record, the artist born Tahliah Barnett enunciates clearly in a sweet, breathy voice that shivers as she reaches for the top-shelf notes over a dialled-down bed of house beats, delicate synths and shimmering harps.

Listening to it is like being granted telepathic access to the drifting thoughts of a dancer in a club. Unsurprising, when you learn that twigs says the concept of this album was born from the rave scene in Prague. She claims to have scribbled the word “Eusexua” (combining sexuality and euphoria) on the back of her hand in a club toilet, along with the thought: “In this room of fools WE MAKE SOMETHING TOGETHER.”

So while she sometimes addresses individuals, she also seems to invite a communal trance. On the title track, the beat races like a thready pulse, low in the mix, as she asks: “Do you feel alone?/ You’re not alone.” In a recent interview, she explained how she wanted to explore our increasing addiction to technology. She came up with an 11-step “healing programme” that apparently involves “a lot of gyrating and shaking … it’s an incredibly raw and primal movement”.

"Listening to it is like being granted telepathic access to the drifting thoughts of a dancer in a club"

A classically trained dancer – working professionally from the age of 12 – twigs has come to despise the rules around music. The supple, experimental warping of beats, tones and song structures here sees her reaching for new, oddity-embracing shapes. As a co-producer on Eusexua, she found herself pushing for a more feminine sound – or in her own words, “more pussy”.

This story is from the January 24, 2025 edition of The Independent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the January 24, 2025 edition of The Independent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE INDEPENDENTView All
Bivol gambles on rematch to banish ‘a tasteless life'
The Independent

Bivol gambles on rematch to banish ‘a tasteless life'

Dmitry Bivol talks Alex Pattle through the crucial details that could decide Saturday's 'revenge' against Artur Beterbiev

time-read
5 mins  |
February 19, 2025
The good, the bad and the ugly: celebrating 40 years of high drama in Albert Square
The Independent

The good, the bad and the ugly: celebrating 40 years of high drama in Albert Square

‘EastEnders’ may not be at its peak but every moment, from ridiculous reveals to social commentary, has played a part in four decades of cockney-fuelled fun,

time-read
5 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Will taxpayers foot the bill if Thames Water goes bust?
The Independent

Will taxpayers foot the bill if Thames Water goes bust?

Britain's largest, and most indebted, private utility, Thames Water, has been in financial difficulties for some time and has now been given another reprieve by the High Court.

time-read
3 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Rick Buckler, drummer with The Jam, dies at 69
The Independent

Rick Buckler, drummer with The Jam, dies at 69

Rick Buckler, the drummer of The Jam, has died aged 69, his former bandmate Paul Weller said.

time-read
2 mins  |
February 19, 2025
THREE'S A CROWD
The Independent

THREE'S A CROWD

One thing that Mike White's hit drama 'The White Lotus' really nails is toxic female friendship, praises Olivia Petter

time-read
3 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Face-off in Madrid is City's most demanding game yet
The Independent

Face-off in Madrid is City's most demanding game yet

The perfectionist is aiming to be almost perfect. Manchester City have been wildly imperfect this season; it is why they think they are on the brink of their earliest Champions League exit since Roberto Mancini's reign.

time-read
3 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Ball pressed pause – it's a rare skill we must all learn
The Independent

Ball pressed pause – it's a rare skill we must all learn

Weeks after a teary exit from her radio show, the national treasure was taking time off to work in a beach cafe. As the former editor of a magazine, Rosie Nixon can relate to a need to slow down and offers her approach to a restful reset

time-read
5 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Bailey brings precision and camp charisma to Richard II
The Independent

Bailey brings precision and camp charisma to Richard II

The 'Wicked' star delights in the speeches of Shakespeare's homoerotic text as the queer-coded despot,

time-read
2 mins  |
February 19, 2025
US sets scene for seismic shift in Russian relations
The Independent

US sets scene for seismic shift in Russian relations

The US and Russia held talks in Saudi Arabia yesterday that set the scene for a seismic shift in relations - and a potential turning point for the Ukraine war after three bloody years.

time-read
2 mins  |
February 19, 2025
Man jailed for abusive and racist emails to politicians
The Independent

Man jailed for abusive and racist emails to politicians

A 39-year-old man who sent abusive emails to safeguarding minister Jess Phillips and Sir Sadiq Khan, the mayor of London, has been jailed for 28 weeks.

time-read
2 mins  |
February 19, 2025