REVIEW: AURORA releases third album 'The Gods We Can Touch'
Norway’s AURORA may not be an artist that is constantly at the top of the music charts or an ubiquitous presence at red carpet events, however she has nonetheless become one of music’s most influential artists since she first emerged in 2013 - being the artist that inspired a young Billie Eilish to launch a music career is proof of her magic.
On January 21 she released her third studio album The Gods We Can Touch. A 15 track journey through “shame, desire and morality”, the album is seen through the prism of Greek mythology with each song introducing a specific god. “One thing that has always bothered me is the idea that we’re born unworthy, having to deem ourselves worthy by suppressing the forces within us that make us human Not perfect, not flawless, just human,” AURORA says. “The flesh, the fruit and the wine. I think that is what intrigues me about the Greek gods. The gods of the ancient world. Perfectly imperfect. Almost within our reach. Like gods we can touch.”
The album is as eclectic as anything AURORA has ever released, but like 2019’s A Different Kind of Human (Step 2) there is a definite move away from the gentle folktronica that defined her earlier releases with a greater focus on dance inspired electro beats. Hints of this direction were evident in the second single released from the album, 2021’s ‘Cure For Me’ which evokes heady nights on the dancefloor, and this mood reappears throughout the album. ‘A Temporary High’, which details a relationship that seems to be always slipping away (“And when she loves you, better hope her love is not a temporary high”), is a glistening synthpop track with a insistent beat drenched in a sonic landscape pulled straight from the 1980s. ‘The Innocents’ combines a jazz piano with a veritable swarm of electronic beats and repeated, chanted lyrics building up to an explosion of noise which leaves you in an almost euphoric state as the song closes. ‘You Keep Me Crawling’ is a powerful track that evokes 1990s trip hop with a fascinating collection of background sounds, while lyrically and vocally it is a classic torch song. “If I keep confessing / Maybe I'll believe that you never meant for love to hurt for me…so you keep me crawling on my knees.” It is possibly the highlight of the album.
This is not to say that The Gods We Can Touch is an album of wall-to-wall bangers. AURORA takes us along a number of different aural paths throughout, most strikingly with ‘Exist for Love’, the first single released from the album in 2020. The song is a gentle, gorgeous track which would not be out of place in a smoky, 1930s speakeasy. ‘Exhale Inhale’ is an ethereal track which gradually swells with strings towards it’s almost celestial closer, while ‘Blood In The Wine’ veers towards rock with stripped back verses that transform into a thumping chorus with AURORA’s vocals carrying a harder edge.
The Gods We Can Touch is arguably AURORA’s best work to date. There is a humanity and emotional connection that was at times missing from A Different Kind of Human (Step 2). This is partly due to a greater vulnerability in the lyrics but also perhaps thanks to the fact many of the songs are first takes, with no additional polishing added. “It’s just that kind of album, that’s the energy I wanted,” AURORA has said.
Still only 25, it is mind-blowing how accomplished AURORA is as an artist. What she can continue to achieve in the coming years can only be dreamed of, but for now The Gods We Can Touch is further proof of AURORA being one of the greats of pop music from the last 10 years.
The Gods We Can Touch is out now via Glassnote Records. You can buy and stream here.
To keep up with all things AURORA you can follow her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
AURORA will be performing songs fro The Gods We Can Touch in a digital experience, A Touch Of the Divine, on January 25. Tickets are on sale now.
Read our six page in depth interview with AURORA in issue 7 of Women In Pop Magazine.
