R&B Soulstress Amel Larrieux is back with a beautiful new single, "Afraid," the first to be lifted from her forthcoming fifth studio album Ice Cream Every Day. It's almost like she never left. Many of Larrieux's fans have been staying in touch with the R&B veteran through her live shows, and she's had plenty over the last few years, and through her ulta personal notes and updates posted on various social networking sites. In 2009 Larrieux intended on releasing new material from Ice Cream and posted two new songs to Itunes, but the album was eventually delayed, so she could raise her two daughters. Moving from one house to another and not having a home studio also added to the delay. But alas! Some artists are well worth the wait. Sade took a good ten years to release their new album -- had me thinking they retired, but I never lost hope.
I love the thumping bass in "Afraid." I think that's the first thing that grabbed me from the record. I think it's cool to get something thumping from Larrieux whose known more for her sentimental ballads. The song, which she delivers with her trademark jazzy vocals colored with a spiraling vibrato, is an ode to her lover who must be pretty darn hot if she's "walking into walls" just thinking of his embrace. She surmises that he must be kin to the moon the ways he moves up and down and dares him to swim into her ocean for the record's climax. I can't think of another Larrieux record where she sells her sensuality so convincingly.
Ice Cream Every Day is set for release Aug 27th, and I've already purchased my copy. Make sure you get yours and force feed it to your mp3 player ASAP. She needs it.
