- Few artists can traverse the genre pool as well as Perth based artist Abbe May. Moving away from the blues/rock and doom pop tones of her previous records, fifth full-length Fruit is geared towards a modern approach to r'n'b.
Love Decline opens things up with a piano riff before attacking you with sultry vocals, dripping with sexual tension. The stacked harmonies fill out the arrangement which is still fairly sparse on the instrumentation, especially compared to the guitar heavy tunes of May’s past.
The album follows a trend: heavy bass lines are favored over guitar riffs, and this adds to the r'n'b vibe. Early single Are We Flirting? stays on target, which really makes the short guitar riffs in the bridge stand out.
Three short confessionals, (Fruit Pt1, 2 and 3) break the record into segments and also document stories of Abbe May’s life growing up queer and Catholic, and these help to bring this slightly over-sensational collection back to a place of reality; to make it more relatable.
Like Me Like I Like You really nails the signature tone of the record with its opening lyrics: “...you don’t like me like I like you / you make me feel like a teenager.” – and paints a relatable image of unrequited lust (everyone has had that one crush right?).
Abbe May's vocals are a definitely underrated aspect of her work – stellar songwriting and arranging can make you miss the aching vulnerability in her whispering and even the range and power in her stronger vocals and harmonies. Her vocal talents deliver a paradox in a way, at times they sound quite girly which adds a taboo flavour to the sexual lyrics, but other times they are dripping in maturity and female sex appeal.
Abbe May has taken a risk in deviating from her norm, but that's what her whole career has been about. With more pent up sexual tension than a teenage boy, Fruit crosses genres and talks about all the things that women really want to talk about, in no uncertain terms. This is a record that boasts sophistication in both musicality and songwriting, and really showcases Abbe May’s versatility as a musician and writer. Hot and heavy, this is a record to listen to with the lights off.
- Olivia Shoesmith.