Single Review: FKA twigs – Cellophane

fka twigs cellophane

FKA twigs returns with breathtaking new single and video
FKA twigs finally made a big comeback! The British alternative pop act launched her debut album LP1 back in 2014, featuring brilliant tracks like ‘Two Weeks’ and ‘Video Girl’. The year after she released her third EP and the 2016 single ‘Good To Love’ is the last thing we heard from her. She is more than ready for a brand new era in her career, which she starts off with the single and video ‘Cellophane’.

‘Cellophane’ is a stripped back ballad with an outpour of raw emotion. The first verse is performed almost a capella with just some sparse piano rhythms backing up her vocals. Those vocals absolutely deserve centre stage on this track. FKA twigs goes from small and intimate to raw and loud, voicing the desperation in the quite heartbreaking lyrics. There is a bit of a beat that joins in later on, but overall ‘Cellophane’ is a minimal production that is merely used as a vehicle for the vocal performance, which is absolutely outstanding. In the lyrics, she seems to be talking about an unrequited love, hypnotically repeating the question: “Why don’t I do it for you?” Her emotive vocals give more meaning and depth to the already powerful lyrics. A sentence like ‘when you’re gone I have no one to tell’ sounds pretty simple, but the emotional power it has in the song gives me goosebumps every single time.

As if the song itself wasn’t powerful enough, FKA twigs released an absolutely breathtaking video for it as well. She practiced pole dancing for months to make it happen, but the result is stunning. This is a contender for video of the year for sure!

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