Three years, a global pandemic, and a diagnosis of an autoimmune disorder between albums, Californian alternative R&B singer/songwriter
Banks
returned with plenty to express on her fourth set,
Serpentina
. Named for the skin-shedding rebirth of the titular reptilian inspiration, the LP is sonically consistent with her previous albums, draping her icy cool vocals over electro-hip-hop production that skitters, slides, and soothes across over a dozen tracks.
' voice remains the main draw, a finely honed instrument that can convey both deep heartbreak ("Deadend") and rapturous longing ("Anything 4 U").
starts strong with the more pulse-pounding moments, including the handclaps- and voice-sampling standout "Meteorite," the digitized aggression of the self-explanatory "Fuck Love," and the swirling, hollow-bass boom of "Holding Back." The mood soon turns with the haunted production of "The Devil," which recalls fellow Angelino
Billie Eilish
, and the back half of the album balances introspection and measured hope (the gospel-kissed "Spirit" with
Samoht
), sounding like a collision between the most subdued material from
Tove Lo
and
Rihanna
. While
manages to add some fresh highlights to
' catalog, it never veers too far from her established formula, for better or worse. ~ Neil Z. Yeung