It Was Divine / Alina Baraz / April 24, 2020
- Joshua Yoo
- Apr 29, 2020
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 13, 2020
Although her presence in the music industry and the media has always been discreet, Alina Baraz makes her anticipated reappearance with “It Was Divine,” a substantial debut album that further establishes her importance in the current wave of sultry R&B. The songwriting, production, arrangement and mixing all point to Baraz’s artistic strengths. Elements such as the airy and atmospheric vocals, substantial use of acoustic guitar backing, or romance-driven lyrical storytelling are evidence of her exceptional ability to convey intimate emotions and tone in her music. “It Was Divine” is, at its core, an album that portrays a romantic relationship from its beginning to its end, and whether Baraz is madly in love with her significant other (“More Than Enough”), asking for answers in a crumbling relationship (“Say You Know”), or mustering the strength to leave a toxic partner (“To Me”), what makes the album remarkable is its ability to sonically place the listener into these same experiences and emotions so adeptly. The feature list, though short, produces some of the brightest spots on the album, whether it’s Khalid on the R&B side (“Off the Grid”) for creating a perfect song for late-night driving, or Smino on the rap side ("Gimme the Wheel") for an upbeat R&B groove jam. While “It Was Divine” is not exactly revolutionary within the R&B world, it about perfectly accomplishes what it intends to accomplish: a luscious, emotionally-touching set of tracks that reaches her fans in a meaningful way. It goes to show that when Alina Baraz plays to her artistic strengths, she operates in her own untouchable lane of passionate and purposeful music.
Best Track(s): More Than Enough, To Me, Off the Grid, Gimme the Wheel Lowlight(s): Night and Morning, The Beginning
SCORE: 7/10
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aItbT_CZqE
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