Water

Album review

The word lotic refers to organisms inhabiting fresh, flowing water. J’Kerian Morgan, the Berlin-based producer and vocalist whose stage name is Lotic, has progressed from making aggressive hybrid club music to a more sensuous form of post-industrial avant-pop. Titling her second album Water, she acknowledges that she's in her element, and more assured of her work than ever. Post-transition, her voice has developed into a more delicate yet deeply expressive instrument, and her soaring vocals magnificently blend with her rumbling beats and atmospheric, neo-classical arrangements. As on 2018's Power, her astounding full-length debut, her lyrics are vulnerable and intimate, but here they're less focused on race and gender identity, more often expressing desire and infatuation. "Emergency" is particularly gripping, with throbbing beats underpinning Morgan's ecstatic wails and frank, desperate pleas for sex. She continues indicating her desire for her partner during "Come Unto Me," which tantalizingly creeps toward bursts of blown-out distortion. The chilling "Apart" is a harp-led ballad conveying the pain of separation, and she questions if her partner understands their effect on her during "A Plea" and "Oblivious." The lengthy finale "Diamond" is another showcase for Morgan's arresting vocal acrobatics, from layered cooing and confessional whispering ("Why do I allow all of this pressure?") to stratospheric shrieks.
© Paul Simpson /TiVo