For a little over a decade, James Blake has been a mainstay behind the scenes of the popular music world. He’s made songs with everyone from Kendrick Lamar to Beyoncé to ROSALÍA and contributed his strong musical mind to multiple award-winning films. But as a solo artist, Blake creates sprawling, emotional music that sits somewhere between the ambient garage of artists like Burial and the confessional R&B of names like Frank Ocean. When he broke out in the early 2010s, he was an electronic music connoisseur of sorts, combining his unique voice and subtle songwriting with experimental beats that were gripping, fleeting and delicate. That style won him the 2013 Mercury Prize for “Overgrown,” an incredible sophomore effort that proved he had carved out a unique space in the art-pop realm.
By 2024, Blake had become one of the largest and most prolific faces in alternative pop music. But when he announced in April that he was no longer releasing music with Universal Music Group, with whom he released six studio albums across 13 years, it felt like a moment of uncertainty for everybody involved. In an Instagram post, Blake said it felt “scary to go independent,” and the announcement came with the news of Blake’s partnership with Vault, a direct-to-fan subscription service that allows artists to share music directly with fans. But, more than two years later, Blake has finally shared “Trying Times,” his first album since going independent and unflinching proof that his creativity persists throughout adversity.
Like in most of his past work, the world of “Trying Times” is built on dreamy instrumentation that subtly slips into your mind as it builds, but his newfound creative freedom is apparent from the album’s first moments. Opener “Walk Out Music” is made up of swelling synths and stuttering drums that underscore Blake’s pitched-up vocals that almost form a duet with his natural voice. “I Had a Dream She Took My Hand” is a modern interpretation of a ‘50s ballad and sees Blake’s passionate lyricism take the lead, almost guiding the woozy pad behind him to the song’s incredibly satisfying conclusion. All throughout the album, Blake is a master of sonics, drawing the listener into his hazy soundscapes with every song. His greatest tool on this record is his own voice: his vocals are drowned in autotune and effects on lead single “Death of Love,” and on the second half of “Didn’t Come To Argue” with Monica Martin, his repetition of the phrase “I’ll take your hand / I’ve got no plan” is pitched down, backing Martin’s verses like an instrument itself.
Structurally, Blake continues to challenge convention throughout the project. His songs remain unorthodox, luring you into a musical maze with his subtle lyricism and labyrinthine construction, but his methods for creating those songs change frequently across the record. At its most immediate, “Trying Times” delivers some of Blake’s most exciting material. “Days Go By” is a syrupy sweet song that calls back to early grime classics while mixing a jungly drum pattern with chord progressions not unlike those present on Tyler, The Creator’s more cheerful songs, and “Rest Of Your Life” is reminiscent of Blake’s earlier work, a wonderfully weird love song that trades elaborate lyricism for a simple refrain and electrifying techno rhythms.
Other songs are less synthetic. The title track is a soulful cut devoid of glitchy electronics, syncopated drum machines or refined synth progressions, but instead utilizes acoustic instrumentation that Blake’s contemplative words sit comfortably on like a pillow. “Make Something Up” is an explosive indie rock anthem that employs noisy electric guitars and will remind fans of the Britpop of the 2000s. Calling his bag deep here is an understatement. In an instant, he shifts from glittery synths to contemplative guitars, from invigorating patterns to somber acoustic drums. Some songs see him occupy the entirety of the stage, captivating the listener with his stunning vocals, while others see him take the backseat and allow his production chops to shine, occasionally with a guest to complement the scene, like on “Doesn’t Just Happen” with UK hip-hop icon Dave.
But while Blake’s sound is as beautiful as ever, his lyricism takes control on “Trying Times” in a way that it doesn’t on past projects. His meditation on the state of the world we live in is both enticing and chilling, filled with concerning indictments of the apathy and despondency that have taken hold of popular culture. On “Death of Love,” he cries out, “Is there no good faith / Is our love misplaced,” while on “Obsession,” a short interlude in the middle of the record, Blake sings as he watches “too many people crashing.”
But it’s not all hopeless. “Trying Times” encapsulates Blake’s dream of a world where people love unconditionally, where empathy triumphs over passivity and where emotion is accepted and celebrated. The most euphoric songs on this record capture the most intense of emotions, the purest hope. The closing track, “Just A Little Higher,” serves as Blake’s final plea, asking his audience to look “just a little higher,” past all the drama and hatred. Perhaps his hope for the world is slightly idealistic, but his way of making his arguments is just too enthralling to not lend an ear.
Ultimately, Blake’s penchant for examining the most common of human emotions—love, hate, anger, happiness, pain, numbness—shines all throughout “Trying Times.” In that sense, he’s not changed. But his newfound ability to flip that feeling on its head, to speak to those emotions with both impressive sophistication and stark rawness in a way that feels both universal and strikingly personal, takes his work to the next level, unlocking his true creativity in a way that he hasn’t fully been able to before. “Trying Times” is a thrilling example of creativity at its least restrained. It’s a record that envelops you into its world with such completeness that you struggle to escape it, even once the record is over. It speaks to our current climate in such a unique, honest and yet positively quixotic manner. But more than anything else, it’s a stunning display of Blake’s abilities as a songwriter, a record that nobody else could ever make quite as fantastic.
“Trying Times” is out now. Have any thoughts on the album? Share them with us at [email protected].
