Nobody names an album after their birth name without a reason. Adrian Nicholas Thaws, known to the world as Tricky since his earliest appearances on Massive Attack's Blue Lines in 1991, chose that name for his tenth studio album as a provocation and an invitation. "Calling it Adrian Thaws is saying you don't really know me," he explains. "So many times people have tried to put a finger on me and every album I go to a different place." It is the most revealing title he has ever used, and fittingly for Tricky, the most guarded. Recorded at his home studio in London following his return after two decades living between New York, Los Angeles, and Paris, Adrian Thaws is his most outward-facing and kinetic album in years, a vivid, attention-grabbing set that roams from hip-hop to house, jazz to blues, rock to reggae, and back again without breaking a sweat. Tricky describes it simply as his club record, the sounds of a man who grew up in Bristol's blues parties and hip-hop clubs from the age of 14, finally making the music those rooms planted in him. It is designed to be played loud. The collaborator list is as international and eclectic as the music itself. Francesca Belmonte, whose voice runs through the album's most intimate moments, appears on five tracks including the electro-tinged standout "Nicotine Love" and the brooding "Something In The Way." Mykki Blanco brings raw, confrontational energy to the opening "Lonnie Listen." Nigerian singer Nneka glides through "Keep Me In Your Shake." Tirzah contributes to the hypnotic opener "Sun Down" and a cover of Janet Kay's lovers rock classic "Silly Games." Blue Daisy, Bella Gotti, and Danish singer Oh Land round out a cast that reflects the genuinely global reach of Tricky's creative world. An album that rewards those willing to meet it on its own restless, unpredictable terms.
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