"Mark begins with poise, vowing on "By the End of the Night" to rebound on the dancefloor. She's quickly swooning, swathing a new paramour in her perfume on the buoyant "ooo" and going "weak in the knees" on the sprung "Sweet Serotonin." "Too Much" features a nifty interpolation of Usher's " My Boo " as she second-guesses her enthusiasm. "Is it too much if I'm thinking about you daily?""
"Mark doesn't really tell stories in her songs; she lives the turmoil, her lithe vocals tracing the flutters of the heart. Survival anthem "Problems" showcases her range, her voice variously a coo, a wail, and a feathery prayer as she tries to will away stress. Folk ballad "Cherry Reds" clings to a warm memory like an heirloom: "Smoking Cherry Reds/In the trees," Mark trills in her smooth upper register, stretching the last word into four wounded syllables."
"The open spaces and pained harmonies of quiet storm are the go-to style for R&B singers working through such dark nights of the soul, but that's one tradition Pretty Idea breaks from. The core producers-Mark, One Direction songwriters Julian Bunetta and John Ryan, and duo Two Fresh-supply a dense, full-band sound. The arrangements are shimmery and lush, every little crevice filled with (at minimum) keys, synths,"
The album follows a wayward path to self-acceptance, moving from rebound vows to quiet self-questioning and eventual acceptance. Mark opens poised and playful, swooning on buoyant tracks and second-guessing desire on midtempo cuts that interpolate familiar R&B motifs. Vocally she inhabits turmoil rather than narrating it, shifting between coos, wails, and fragile prayers across survival anthems and folk-tinged ballads. Intimate hooks become exclamations of need, and background harmonies heighten emotional distress. Core producers including Mark, Julian Bunetta, John Ryan, and Two Fresh create dense, full-band arrangements. The production is shimmery and lush, filling each crevice with keys, synths, and layered rhythms.
Read at Pitchfork
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