Album Review: Disclosure-Caracal

 

 

 

 

By Annalysa Vasquez. September 27th. 2015

On September 25th, 2015 the long awaited second album of Disclosure was released. Caracal is the title of their newest game changing album, featuring tracks with vocals from The Weeknd, Lorde, Miguel and Sam Smith.

Disclosure’s true breakout success came in the lead-up to the release of their first LP, when they joined forces with Sam Smith, to release “Latch” in 2012. Following these were singles like, “White Noise” featuring AlunaGeorge. With a two year gap since the last release, a steady stream of singles have come out, all leading up to the release of the highly anticipated, Caracal.

Disclosure have taken themselves in a different direction here, they’re less about creating dance hits and more focused on the brilliant songwriters they’ve featured with strong deep house elements. And the songwriting is amazing- from the chilled out brilliance of “Willing & Able” to the undeniably catchy “Magnets.” Just because the tempo dropped doesn’t mean the record is any less eye-catching. At least, not if you go in with the right expectations.

The first track of this album makes itself known, as the loping beat to “Nocturnal” reveals glossy production – and with The Weeknd whose vocals are just perfection.

Sam Smith is back again too, and in Omen he reprises the guest role that catapulted him towards fame in 2012 with “Latch”. Its deep house groove with Smith’s vocals suggests vulnerability and raw emotion. One of the most anticipated songs on the album was Disclosure’s track with Lorde called “Magnets.” If you are anything like me, you will have hunted the internet for this song after they performed it on the Brit Awards in 2014. One of the few tracks featuring vocals from Howard of Disclosure, “Echoes” displays all of Disclosure’s best tricks in grand view: bouncing percussion, high-speed trajectory, and vocals that just mesh with the house instrumentals. But my personal favorite is “Bang That” as it serves a fresh breath of air with its more upbeat and head banging tempo.

It is to Disclosure’s enormous credit that the different singing styles blend together, and that they manage to capture the qualities of their guest vocalists without compromising their own distinctive style. What Disclosure have done really well here is kept with the style that has rightly made them huge, honing their songwriting skills further in conjunction with a group of very well chosen collaborators.

Overall, I highly recommend this album. Even if you are new to deep house music this album will surely draw you in and get you hooked!