Celeste's second album, 'Woman of Faces', arrives amid reported label tensions and creative clashes, yet its sombre songcraft proves spectacular. The follow-up to her chart-topping debut 'Not Your Muse' eschews commercial formulas for a timeless blend of chanson, prewar jazz, and modern classical influences.
The album's creation was fraught with difficulty. Celeste publicly disagreed with producer Jeff Bhasker over string arrangements she commissioned, and last month she criticised her label for lacking support and threatening to drop her unless she included two specific songs. This echoes the experience of singer Raye, who left the same label in 2021 over similar frustrations.
Musically, 'Woman of Faces' is sumptuous yet stark, with orchestrations and classical flourishes that evoke Philip Glass. Its emotional tone is sombre, addressing societal pressures on women, technology's impact, and the fallout of a broken relationship. The pace is glacial, with drums almost entirely absent until the penultimate track, 'Could Be Machine', a jarring burst of electronics and double-time beats.
The album's sound feels removed from mainstream pop, closer to prewar vocal jazz, French chanson réaliste, and old-fashioned West End showstoppers. Yet the songs never lapse into pastiche; Celeste's nuanced vocals and phrasing shine, building from whispers to powerful crescendos. A potential flaw is the near-uniform pacing, which may challenge listeners in one sitting, but the potency and beauty of the material are undeniable.
