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Process

Sampha

Process

Debut album of electronic soul from the London-born producer who’s worked with Beyoncé, Drake and Kanye West

ADM rating[?]

8.1

Label
Young Turks
UK Release date
03/02/2017
US Release date
03/02/2017
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  1. 10.0 |   The Skinny

    Process is an exercise in catharsis, a deep breath in that lays Sampha’s soul bare through gorgeous vignettes of his life. He worries, he regrets, he aches. He’s human
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  2. 9.1 |   Pretty Much Amazing

    A lush record that looks to the self for material, Process, true to its name, dissects aspects of Sissay’s life (fame, religion, family, and of course, love) using his trademark vulnerability as a means of analysis
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  3. 9.1 |   A.V. Club

    Process is an exercise in finding beauty in even the tragedy of a parent’s death, a record of singular probity and hard-earned optimism. It’s the best R&B debut since FKA Twigs’ LP1
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  4. 9.0 |   All Music

    All the narratives, expressed in anguished, repentant, and haunted terms, befit a voice that always sounds as if it's on the brink of choking back tears
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  5. 9.0 |   Onlike

    Instead of pleasing everyone, Sampha’s figured what he’s best at. On Process, once and for all, he proves he has way more to offer than being just a collaborator
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  6. 9.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    Every word he sings and every production decision he makes is an attempted step out of the darkness
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  7. 9.0 |   The Line Of Best Fit

    The spotlight finally shines on Sampha and he doesn’t not disappoint. Process is an impressive curtain-raiser to what is sure to be an equally impressive solo career
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  8. 9.0 |   The 405

    The album refuses to settle on one obsession, often dealing with lovers lost or scorned, drifting into politics and back into the hyper-personal
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  9. 9.0 |   Exclaim

    One of the most assured debut albums in recent memory
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  10. 9.0 |   Mixmag

    He is, perhaps, the UK’s finest vocal talent since Amy Winehouse
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  11. 8.8 |   Gig Soup

    ??Fans of pop, soul, R&B, and electronic will all be able to take something thought-provoking and memorable away from this transcendent debut album
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  12. 8.6 |   Pitchfork

    The debut LP from Sampha is a remarkable, meditative work, as he processes grief and navigates self-discovery
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  13. 8.5 |   Beardfood

    Easy on the ears and soothing to the soul
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  14. 8.0 |   The Independent

    Vulnerability is the current stock-in-trade of neo-soul, but rarely has it been indulged quite as imaginatively as on Sampha’s Process
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  15. 8.0 |   Q

    Sampha's lyrics are clever and his voice so inherently likeable that it works. Print edition only

  16. 8.0 |   Mojo

    Sits somewhere between the ghostly avant-soul if Frank Ocean and James Blake's emotionally wrought electronica
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  17. 8.0 |   Rolling Stone

    With a taste for non-Western melodies and futurist beats (check the African harp and polyrhythms of "Kora Sings"), his songs are intricate weaves
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  18. 8.0 |   Clash

    A healing record for the broken, the lovelorn and the lost
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  19. 8.0 |   Loud And Quiet

    A triumph not only of feeling and melody, but also of patience and efficiency
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  20. 8.0 |   DIY

    A debut bursting with ideas, broad in scope, and vivid in its storytelling
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  21. 8.0 |   Evening Standard

    Sampha has channelled his talents into this remarkable debut
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  22. 8.0 |   The FT

    Album employs remorseless percussion pulling against slow piano chords and mesmerising melodies from a kora
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  23. 8.0 |   The Observer

    If Sampha’s process sounds like one big downer, it isn’t. Every listen throws up some new, previously unnoticed innovation
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  24. 8.0 |   Crack

    It’s clear to see why he’s so sought after: Sampha’s voice hits you at a spiritual level
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  25. 8.0 |   The Guardian

    While clearly not constructed with commercial ambition at the forefront of its mind, it’s certainly good enough to make an unlikely star of the man behind it
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  26. 8.0 |   The Irish Times

    His delicate wisp of a falsetto is a fantastic calling card and something which brings each song smartly together, yet he also has the ability to craft songs which are full of nuance and emotion
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  27. 8.0 |   NME

    He hasn’t stepped out of his shadowy, background world; instead, he’s invited us to join him there
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  28. 8.0 |   The Music

    A beautifully dissonant and unexpected approach that feels oddly comforting
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  29. 8.0 |   PopMatters

    Sampha's gorgeous debut brings physicality and immediacy to internal experiences like memory and fear
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  30. 7.7 |   Earbuddy

    I know it's early, but the best song of 2017 is most likely on Sampha's debut full-length
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  31. 7.5 |   Consequence Of Sound

    On his long-awaited debut LP, Sampha proves he's on par with, if not above, his collaborators
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  32. 7.0 |   FasterLouder

    Now 28, Sampha has finally laid everything out on the line musically
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  33. 7.0 |   Spectrum Culture

    An astonishing debut that reveals things about the artist no one would have expected
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  34. 7.0 |   musicOMH

    A hugely graceful collection played out with dignity
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  35. 6.0 |   State

    Process is the kind of record that develops the more you listen to it, morphs from one form to another, becomes something completely different with familiarity
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  36. 6.0 |   Under The Radar

    Process, bar some stand-out moments, proves to be somewhat underwhelming
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  37. 5.0 |   The Quietus

    Overall this feels like one in a long line of emotive “indietronica” records that slots into one of those “chill and alt R&B” Spotify playlists. It’s fine, but it’s kind of forgettable
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Sampha: Process

  • Download full album for just £8.49
  • 1. Plastic 100°C £0.89
  • 2. Blood on Me £0.89
  • 3. Kora Sings £0.89
  • 4. (No One Knows Me) Like the Piano £0.89
  • 5. Take Me Inside £0.89
  • 6. Reverse Faults £0.89
  • 7. Under £0.89
  • 8. Timmy's Prayer £0.89
  • 9. Incomplete Kisses £0.89
  • 10. What Shouldn't I Be? £0.89
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