Transparent Yellow Vinyl
Lately, it feels like the world is one endless bad news cycle. Joshua Idehen isn’t here
to pretend otherwise – but on the spoken word artist’s new album, I Know You’re
Hurting, Everyone Is Hurting, Everyone Is Trying, You Have Got To Try, he provides
a phenomenal sonic, poetic space. Made with his creative partner, musician Ludvig
Parment, the album is an urgent but transcendent collection that
holds you through it all, filled with grief, euphoria and hope.
I Know You’re Hurting… comes after the virality of Idehen’s track Mum Does The
Washing, a wry and whipsmart poem examining how the world works (which started
life as a Twitter thread), set to Parment’s spacious beats. The song has seen the pair
propelled beyond Idehen’s wildest dreams this past year, with support from the likes
of Jamz Supernova and Huw Stephens leading to sold-out shows and packed out
festival performances including rammed crowds at Glastonbury and Green Man, an
appearance on Later with Jools, and a support slot on Baxter Dury’s European tour
this winter. For Idehen, this is all so special because it marked a new era of his
career after around two decades of writing poetry. “In a nutshell, the song has
changed my life,” he says.
Across the album, that means uplifting choirs, cozy samples and exuberant,
sometimes house-tinged beats. “I am personally drawn to music that transports you
to a place, or scene or mindset,” says Parment. This is topped with ruminative
musings on morality and human connection; about the longer loves in life – like
friendships, family – that sustain us. These come from Idehen and Parment, along
with a host of friends and collaborators, including writers Leone Ross and Charlotte
Manning, and vocalist Amanda Bergman, to help expand on the topics of the record
without sounding preachy. Similarly, there are musical guests including saxophonist
Pete Fraser and Shabaka Hutchings on flute, each helping to imbue the album with a
rich warmth.