(PMR)
Tala’s mellow, unsensational debut ruminates on friendship, faith and family over fine, honeyed production but with a tad too much similarity

‘I’ve forgotten how I used to write my name,” Hope Tala winces, in the diaristic opening bars to her debut album. Seeking clarity through her pen, the soulful west Londoner is wrestling with growing pains and writer’s block – but then it all flows out. Over a honeyed mix of bossa nova, R&B and pop, and in her gorgeous, breathy voice, Tala ruminates on heartbreak, self-confidence, faith, family and friendship.

The bright Lights Camera Action quotes Maya Angelou and has the serenity and sunshine of early Corinne Bailey Rae, but ends with a targeted shot at a fame-hungry sell-out. Survival reflects, eloquently, on her relationship to her father’s Jamaican roots, over shuffling, unsettled drums and harmonies befitting a 90s R&B girl group.