Katy B: Honey review – vocal melodies elevated by luscious production

The 2011 album On a Mission was originally conceived as a showcase for London radio station Rinse FM, with Kathleen Brien employed to provide featured vocals. But such was the draw of the singer herself that the record was remodelled as her popstar debut. Three albums in, however, and it’s increasingly difficult to find the appeal of Brien as a vocalist. The narrative she introduced with her first single Katy on a Mission – the story of a prospective dancefloor tryst – still dominates, and it’s a subject that barely contains the emotional mileage to sustain a single song, let alone a whole body of work. Her vocal melodies, meanwhile, can feel almost abrasive in their mediocrity. Instead, it’s left to the production to provide the wit, amusement and emotion: highlights include German Whip producers the Heavytrackerz bringing dread-infused club-grime with Lose Your Head, and Floating Points and Four Tet’s lusciously gloopy hi-def synths on Calm Down.