Without a solo release since 2014’s I Never Learn, it was about time Lykke Li came back to us. And she’s been hinting at a return for a while, releasing a teaser clip clip entitled so sad so sexy a couple of weeks ago. But it’s only now that we’ve gotten confirmation that she’s back with a new album and new music. Lykke Li’s new album is called So Sad So Sexy and is out in June, and the first two tracks to drop are ‘hard rain’ and ‘deep end’.
The main headline here is that if you expected a more classic pop, ‘real’ instrument-based record along the lines of I Never Learn or her side-project/ supergroup LIV, then she’s given you the swerve here. Both songs take Li’s sound somewhere completely new. ‘Hard rain’ goes deep into Frank Ocean-esque, glitch-ballad territory, whereas ‘deep end’ blends her previous flair for a dramatic chorus with tricky little vocal hooks, hard beats and slick, hip hop rhythms. While she’s still miserable (wouldn’t be Lykke Li if it wasn’t), she’s playing a whole new game now. So Sad So Sexy is out on June 8, and you can check out the two tracks below.