CLAIRO Vinilo y CD

Review: Living up to her establishing name as a bedroom pop artist, Clairo self-releases her third full-length album Charm. Even so, following up 2021's Sling, Charm pares back Clairo's debut and sophomore records' successive pop sounds for a liver, perhaps more earnest exploration of indie rock and chamber pop proper, building on the themes of Sling, which also dealt in themes of of maturation and impending motherhood. Notably, producer Leon Michels of the cinematic soul moniker El Michels Affair claims production credits across the bulk of the album, suggesting new collaborative horizons for the singer. A collection of warm, psychedelic songs, echoing Joni Mitchell or Joan Baez, we hear an expansion in Clairo's sound and a move towards earnest and stoic grace.

Review: Under the Clairo alias, Claire Cottrill has achieved cult status in recent times, with her lo-fi take on indie, alternative and dream-pop finding on audience on both sides of the Atlantic. The Boston-based singer-songwriter continues her ascent from the musical margins on Charm, her first album for three years. It's a hugely atmospheric and emotive affair, with Cottrill languidly shuffling between subtly country-tinged lo-fi indie-pop (the semi-acoustic warmth of 'Nomad'), late '60s-inspired dream pop, gentle psychedelia and loose-limbed, surprisingly funky haziness smothered in rubbery bass guitar, vintage synth sounds and heady horns ('Sexy To Someone'). And yes, it's an undeniably charming affair.