Based on the concept of coming down from a great high, FKA twigs’s “EUSEXUA Afterglow,” asks listeners to consider what it means to reach the pinnacle of human experience.
The English singer coined the word “eusexua” — the title of their previous album released in January — to signify the feeling of “nothingness before a big surge of inspiration.” “EUSEXUA Afterglow,” then, is the musical equivalent of the moments that follow, rich with a voice that is both besotten and needy. The light, skittering production of the Nov. 14 release stands in stark contrast with the pumping synths and pounding beats that defined her previous album.
“EUSEXUA Afterglow” begins with “Love Crimes,” the track on the album that most embodies eusexua. The dramatic, pulsing production is complemented by heartfelt lyrics: “Hard times, love crimes (E-U-S-E-X) / My heart keeps falling harder than before (U-A),” twigs sings.
The album then flows into a series of softer, slower paced songs — among which “HARD,” the fourth track, is a standout. With an upbeat, sunny production that matches its lighthearted lyricism, “HARD” tackles the feelings that follow eusexua: “Wet thighs, I’m ecstatic, chemistry was automatic,” she sings over a dreamy techno beat.
But the album has a weak and mushy middle. “Cheap Hotel,” “Touch a Girl” and “Predictable Girl,” although vaguely enjoyable, feel like repetitions of the same boring blend.
Later in the album, FKA twigs finds their groove again. On “Sushi,” an upbeat, playful bop, FKA twigs sings about the places she wants to take her lover: “Sushi on Monday / Dancing on Tuesday / Karaoke Wednеsday / I wanna take you out.” Then, on “Stereo Boy,” the album finds a striking finish in twigs’s poignant wails about their lover.
FKA twigs’s revised sound is a refinement of the techno-inspired style she experimented with on “EUSEXUA,” which itself was a major evolution from her previous work. “EUSEXUA” remains FKA twigs’s biggest commercial success so far, reaching No. 24 on the Billboard 200 and scoring 87 out of 100 on Metacritic.
But “EUSEXUA Afterglow” takes artistry to a new level. The production on “EUSEXUA Afterglow” feels more sophisticated, like FKA twigs is reining in her wilder instincts.
These instincts are not always as contained in the public sphere. Online critics have lambasted FKA twigs for being out of touch with non-celebrities. Earlier this year, twigs was criticized after going semi-viral on TikTok for asking an audience at Resident Advisor Exchange Live, “Where are all the thinkers?” It is hard, of course, to be a great thinker while working three jobs.
But FKA twigs doesn't appear to voice any shame for the life that comes with fame. “I think being famous is funny,” she proclaims on “Wild and Alone,” which features a guest appearance from PinkPantheress.
Originally conceived as a deluxe version of “EUSEXUA,” “EUSEXUA Afterglow” was revealed to be a full album in August. While the lackluster promo for the album undersold its offerings and made it seem like scraps from “EUSEXUA,” “EUSEXUA Afterglow” is anything but — the album marks a new and exciting era for FKA twigs, who has proven she is not afraid to experiment and continue developing her musical persona.
