A flash of red hair, a sharp face and freckly, pearly white skin: Archie Marshall has proven for a long time that there is often more to people than what originally meets the eye. The ex-teenage baritone who released 6 Feet Beneath The Moon in 2013 and The OOZ in 2017 is now a father. For his third album, King Krule, now 25, has watered down his melancholy, putting more of an emphasis on brass-assisted blues for this more intimate 14-track-long opus. The Londoner (exiled to the countryside) displays his unique, previously-plaintive voice, which now soothes (The Dream), reverberates (Supermarché), feels lighter (Theme For The Cross) and still adolescent at times (Please Complete Thee). There are fresh moments, such as when he sings about his daughter on the floating Airport Antenatal Airplane alongside a Nilüfer Yanya sample. King Krule infuses various aspects to sculpt these forty minutes of relaxed no-wave: rugged flow, jagged saxophones (Stoned Again) and searing punk intensity (Comet Face). Anxiety finds inner peace: “I see beauty everywhere. I knew it was there but now I understand it”. Co-produced by Dilip Harris, Man Alive! was recorded at night, just like its predecessors, between London and Stockport. A massive album which will undoubtedly blossom on stage as well. © Charlotte Saintoin/Qobuz