Ava Max - Heaven & Hell

The Guardian 80

(Atlantic)
Back to the era of prime Gaga and Katy Perry with nailed-on melodies and high-wire vocals - this album is determined to entertain

When Katy Perry’s Smile album recently failed to worry the top of the global charts it apparently rang the death knell for capital P pop. “Life and listening have become too complex for 2D”, claimed The Atlantic, with the “costumed fictions” of Perry, Lady Gaga and dollar sign-era Kesha dismissed as passé. How then to explain 26-year-old Amanda Koci, AKA Ava Max, an uncomplicated throwback to Fame-era Gaga, saddled with a gimmicky lopsided wig? Sure, Heaven & Hell has a loose conceptual framework – first half uplifting, second half darker – but it doesn’t impede on a turbo-charged, ballad-averse album that buffs 2010-level melodies until they dazzle.