Lianne La Havas - Lianne La Havas

The Guardian 80

(Nonesuch)
The Londoner’s voice takes centre stage on her impressive third album

While Leanne La Havas’s previous albums – 2012’s acoustic-led Is Your Love Big Enough? and 2015’s neo-soul dabbling Blood – had their moments, they never quite reflected the spirit of her captivating live performances. On this delayed third album, she has managed to harness that purity across 11 songs that purposefully bloom. Where previously the production sometimes intruded, here the Londoner’s multilayered voice is pushed front and centre, riding the lapping waves of the excellent Bittersweet, about long distance breakups (“I’m too far away, don’t know what to tell you babe” she sighs), before fraying around the edges on the tender Paper Thin.

Related: Lianne La Havas: 'It's hard to fit in when you have two heritages'

Pitchfork 78

Paring her sound back to little more than her skillful guitar-playing and deep, husky voice, the London songwriter explores the aftermath of a breakup with confidence and repose.