The Book Of Traps and Lessons

The Book of Traps and Lessons is sharp as Tempest's lyrics position her as a soothsayer. Through her album, she inspires a call for consciousness that will certainly incite radical social and personal change.

She has a unique capacity to include all the world’s issues in the album just by slipping in an occasional nugget of truth that punches the listener in the gut.

She is still at her best as a performer, delivering her work verbally, lingering here and there, quavering when needed, framing questions, summoning anger, then letting the needle drop right on the beat. Emotionally, there's a lot to unpack, but the need to feel and engage more deeply is one of her primary decrees and this powerful album is a lesson worth learning.

It is a genuine surprise that this is Tempest's first record not to be Mercury Prize-nominated, given it could well go down as her best, but regardless, this is a highly satisfactory work.

An always thought-provoking record.

Togetherness is the force that continually grounds The Book Of Traps And Lessons despite the dystopian soldiers that march across its drenched landscape.

On The Book of Traps and Lessons Kate Tempest continues to impress as one of the UK’s most vital voices.

The result is mesmerising--one lone, moving meditation on love and England and murderous empire. [Jul 2019, p.86]

This record is a living poem that captures the angry tension of being alive in 2019: trying not to look directly at the oncoming crises, trying to love and give and dance in the midst of firesmoke.

Claustrophobic, gripping, uncomfortably frank suite. [Aug 2019, p.39]

While it isn’t as immediate as ‘Everybody Down’ or as viscerally brutal as ‘Brand New Ancients’, there is a new maturity here. Tempest is baring her soul, and scars, for the world to see – she doesn’t need to rage to get her point across. There is a powerful understatement to this album that yields more secrets with every listen.

A clever marriage of weighty words and sonic delight. [Summer 2019, p.115]

Even if you struggle with the minimal production, “The Book of Traps and Lessons” is still an important album and one worth repeated listens. We are in an age of chaos and outrage, and Tempest offers clarity and compassion. She is one of the great voices of our age, and an essential artist.

There’s nothing new here, but it’s a strange feeling of someone else repeating back what you’ve probably been thinking. Tempest acknowledges she’s not saying anything revolutionary, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth saying.