Jessie Ware - 110% (and everything else she's done)

there's a 1 minute snippet of "pearls" doing the rounds and it sounds absolutely wonderful. can't wait for this record

I don’t think y’all are ready for the food Jessie Ware’s been cooking..
09.02 pic.twitter.com/oV8gxB0Sr0

— BlackoutZone (@blackoutzoned) February 7, 2023

here's the snippet, sounds great

exquisite

tracklist:

That! Feels Good!
Free Yourself
Pearls
Hello Love
Begin Again
Beautiful People
Freak Me Now
Shake the Bottle
Lightning
These Lips

Dig Pearls sounds very boogie.

It’s not really my style and I was more into the less flashy style of WYP? but it’s good.

I loved the clip yesterday but I’m not really connecting w the full song for whatever reason

Stoked for this, though I’ll wait for the deluxe edition to buy it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvB-iPmmIQw

it's good but i don't quite expect the album to live up to what's your pleasure, seems to be going for a bolder, brighter sound

I saw someone on reddit I think describe it as What’s Your Pleasure? with glitter which sort of makes sense to me.

It's not a big deal if one of her tracks is okay so long as it fits the gestalt. I had the same trouble with a couple tracks on WYP, my album of the year.

There's just enough of Wham!'s "Everything She Wants" in "Pearls" to tickle my ear, but probably not enough to have to share the songwriting credit.

Because I have standards for my pop music, I will say this chorus is really bad.

is it just me or is the production on this a lot more muted than on the clip posted earlier? I kinda preferred the sound on the clip :/

(n/b might be a streaming quality issue, spotify version seems closer to the clip than the youtube one, though still not the same)

This is not great but I'm not mad at it. Not on the same level as anything on WYP? for sure.

idk i love this. sounds great on a loud system. the high bit on the chorus is luxurious camp like faux fur like the press photo, obvious is a good look for her, she's going for the queers, 'shake it till the pearls fall off' is a catchier, more delicious line than anything on wyp afaict.

After repeated listens ,I am also loving it, especially everything after the bridge, this is the highest notes I have heard her sing in any of her songs, very impressed.

“Please” is still absolute god-tier Jesse

JessIe

I think I might be on my own in thinking this is better than Free Yourself. I like them both a lot, but there's something about Pearls that really clicks with me. The build up to the chorus is so soothing.

The reaction to Pearls reminds me of how Ooh La La was seen as a lesser Jessie single. It did seem slight as a single but then ended up being one of my favourites on the album.

ooh la la was definitely a grower for me. i think the breakdown with the lyrics about driving fast with cigarettes on the dash is one of my fav moments on the album.

love it

sounds good driving along PCH at sunset, i tell you what. top tier jessie.

nice

Finally got around to trying pearls on headphones and ok I am sold.

New single is so good. My favourite of the era so far.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd3C69lVU5w

I'm loving the maximalism.

oh yeah that's great, easily the best so far

fuck yeah

Idk what's wrong with me but I only just now heard the bonus tracks on the what's your pleasure platinum pleasure edition. She's so good. The past three years have been gold for her (and roisin and Kylie and others, truly a great time to be alive)

Man if "Begin Again" is NOT the best song of 2023 I'm looking forward to hearing what is. It's a stone cold jam.

new album is quite good but a step down from what's your pleasure, just not quite as consistent. "lightning" is a little out of place sonically too

can definitely hear the b-52s influence she's been talking about

'These Lips' is amazing on first listen - the fast backing vocals are a cool hook, and the attitude in the bridge is uncharacteristic from Ware. "These lips are wanted in a hundred countries, maybe more"

OBSESSED with "freak me now"

Love everything about this album. It flies by so quick. The last two songs are my immediate favourites.

Still not much into "Free Yourself" but everything else here sounds good, definitely leaves me wanting more. "freak me now" stood out to me too, such a smooth liquid track

I'm the opposite - "Free Yourself" still stands out after 1.5 listens.

The lack of an exclamation mark between "Feels" and "Good" is really distracting me.

makes sense with how it's phrased in two parts in the song

i'm going on amazon US and it looks like a lot of Jessie's music is filed under "Gov't Mule"

Tried to get Chicago tix this morning 15 min. after they went on sale and got a 'no tix' available message. Going on Vivid for well over a hundred now.

tix still available for the Toronto show, come hang w me

Love the la la las in "Pearls"

"Freak Me Now" is great! Very Daft Punk bassline.

this is her worst album, which is (isn't?) saying much bc it's still v much wonderful, just that I like Glasshouse a lot and this album leans too far into kitsch for my tastes but she's good at it so w/e

Jesus, she's playing the Vic here?!

This is album is very Girls Aloud to me. There's three or four songs I can imagine them singing.

Toro is vibing HARD to the new @JessieWare album 🦜 🎵 pic.twitter.com/T3B8yRMzXG

— Mark Joseph Stern (@mjs_DC) April 29, 2023

adore "lightning" but can't quite get with the rest of the record. i wish it were less tasteful tbh

"Lightning" has the whispery-scratchy vocal she should use more often.

I agree this is a disappointment: she's willing herself to be frivolous.

I still like the album (not nearly as much as WYP though), but feel you on that last point, Alfred