On Aug. 29, Blood Orange released its newest album, Essex Honey. This is the first album that Dev Hynes has put out under the Blood Orange name since the 2019 release Angel’s Pulse.

The album opens with a song titled Look At You, which sounds like a synth track with calm vocals over it. At first listen, the album didn’t hold much interest for me. It sounded very instrumental, which isn’t something that I usually listen to. 

Throughout his career, Hynes has never really had any household hits, but it has always been in the background, producing for popular artists such as Mariah Carey. Essex Honey feels different than previous albums, the sound is new, it sounds more from the heart than ever. The emotion is very raw and heartfelt, and the guest artists like Lorde and Caroline Polachek fit this vibe perfectly 

As the album goes on, it starts to blur and mesh together. After a while it just sounded like I was listening to background music. The good parts of the album were very good, especially the song titled The Field with Daniel Caesar, but I found myself falling asleep during the lows. 

This album was definitely a sweet idea, but I feel like it made me really tired, and it isn’t something I would listen to if I wasn’t reviewing it. It was something different though, so I do appreciate that.

Sleepy feelings aside, Essex Honey is beautifully crafted, it captures the idea of grief and emotion with grace, even if it isn’t perfect. It’s a great album that lets you sit and think in your own thoughts if that is something that you are looking for