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Aug 24, 2017It sounds like a natural progression for the Londoners, and in the process, they have made something that tips its hat to decades-old tendencies whilst sounding more modern than most records to drop in 2017.
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MojoJul 25, 2017All told: a summer soul smash. [Sep 2017, p.93]
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Jul 21, 2017In digging back through music history’s treasure trove, Childhood have forged ahead into genuinely exciting new ground. They might have broken through with a bunch of other bands, but now Childhood don’t need anyone but themselves.
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Jul 20, 2017The piano-led title track is sparkly but paredso far back you feel as though you’re there in the studio. While there’s still room to push it further, Childhood are clearly coming of age.
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Jul 20, 2017The result of this collaboration is a set of sophisticated, textured psychedelic soul and jazzy synth pop with no shortage of elegant grooves and melodies. The new sound may be a surprise, but it could also be the sound of summer.
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Jul 20, 2017Universal High is the reinvention we never knew we needed.
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Q MagazineJul 19, 2017This irresistibly funky makeover feels like the emergence of a major new talent. [Aug 2017, p.108]
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Jul 19, 2017It’s a natural-sounding progression that confounds the expected developments ‘a guitar band’ should make and instead adds a glorious musical technicolour to a set of songs to soundtrack the summer and beyond.
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Jul 20, 2017It's a refreshing step away from the anti-culpability of 'nice-boy' singers like Ed Sheeran and the ilk. Ultimately, the record is a lot of fun and will sit best with those who avoid taking life and love too seriously.
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Jul 20, 2017Change is good and expected from new, learning artists, but lacking a distinguishable characteristic to cling to makes the trajectory for a band like Childhood hazier than the kaleidoscopic jams they started out with.
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Aug 17, 2017Childhood don’t want for exploratory instincts, but focused tunes prove more elusive. Without them, this long hot summer of an album risks passing you by.
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UncutJul 19, 2017Universal High usually depends more on mood than focus. A little more of the latter and it would be almost perfect. [Aug 2017, p.26]
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Jul 19, 2017Unfortunately, with much of the record polished to a dull gleam, there’s little else that succeeds in rising above a pleasant but otherwise unremarkable album.
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Jul 21, 2017At points, Universal High finds a hook and rides it somewhere new, but for the most part it’s content to time-travel to safe harbors, layering clean, jazzy guitar over simple grooves or dabbling in yacht rock.