Label: PIAS
Released: 2nd February 2023
Born from a lifelong love of 90s dance, Rose Gray’s latest sees her join her formidable pop vocals with a healthy dose of rave classic beats and brew up a distinctly Rose Gray cocktail on ‘Higher Than The Sun’.
From the first notes of the release-chasing ‘Ecstasy’, Rose makes it clear that she is hear to bring back the true club anthem – it captures that sweet, hazy feeling of flashing neon pinks and beaming smiles under the lights, the music carrying you through to morning light.
‘Sun Comes Up’ shows a different side to the princess of the dancefloor – it’s a more lowkey version of her sound, reaching for live strings and a more moody ambience, but there’s still that restless, swirling energy at its core. By ‘Prettier Than You’, she is yearning for that relief again; with sly, tongue-in-cheek delivery and shuffling beats, she quickly ups the pace once more.
The feeling she’s been reaching desperately for finally arrives on final track, ‘Promise Me’. Her powerhouse vocals are at their finest, and her dizzying hybrid of disco, rave and pop take her to completely new heights. The dilemmas she faces throughout the EP all fade into the background – this is a journey to complete and utter bliss, and she finally unearths it.
In doing so, Rose Gray cements herself as the leader of a new charge of alt-pop, rave-leaning pioneers, and it’s safe to say there is no telling which dancefloor she will command next.
