British singer/songwriter/guitarist Lianne La Havas' debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough?, produced by Matt Hales (Aqualung), is due out in the US August 7 on Nonesuch Records and is now available to pre-order in the Nonesuch Store; the first 100 pre-orders include an exclusive print signed by La Havas. The album is out now on Warners in the UK and Ireland, earning four-star reviews from Q, the Independent, the Daily Telegraph, and the Irish Times, Independent, and Herald. "It’s always been clear that La Havas has a special voice, and so it proves here," says the BBC. "Her vocals are soulful, edged with lounge-bar smoke, but each note is sung with force and precision ... It’s a voice that invites you in, and only the hardest heart will resist the offer."
British singer/songwriter/guitarist Lianne La Havas has emerged as one of the UK’s most buzzed-about new talents, with critically acclaimed EPs, sold-out shows worldwide and nods from the likes of Bon Iver and Ryan Adams. Her debut album, Is Your Love Big Enough?, produced by Matt Hales (Aqualung), is out today in the UK on Warner Music and is due out in the United States on August 7 via Nonesuch Records. For US fans, Is Your Love Big Enough? is available to pre-order in the Nonesuch Store starting today; the first 100 orders include an exclusive print autographed by La Havas. She talks about each track on the album in a series of videos posted to her YouTube channel, which you can watch below.
Today's UK release of Is Your Love Big Enough? on Warners follows Friday's release in Ireland and the Benelux countries, all of which has brought with it great critical acclaim for La Havas and the new album, which has earned four-star reviews from Q, the Independent on Sunday, the Daily Telegraph, and the Irish Times, Irish Independent, and Irish Herald, as well as perfect five-star reviews from the Irish Mirror and Irish Daily Mail.
The BBC calls Is Your Love Big Enough? "a strong and skillfully delivered set," with reviewer Chris Lo explaining: "It’s always been clear that La Havas has a special voice, and so it proves here. Her vocals are soulful, edged with lounge-bar smoke, but each note is sung with force and precision ... It’s a voice that invites you in, and only the hardest heart will resist the offer. La Havas’ guitar work, meanwhile, is often superb." Read the review at bbc.co.uk.
The Independent on Sunday, in its four-star review, calls it a "tasty piece of nu-soul ... La Havas's style, which recalls Roberta Flack, Nina Simone, Dory Previn and Joni Mitchell (you can see why Prince, an admirer of Joni and Janelle, is a Lianne fan), is intimate and confessional." Read more at independent.co.uk.
Clash Music rates the album an eight out of ten, praising the candid nature of its songs. "By releasing a debut with such honesty at its core," writes Clash reviewer Simon Butcher, "Lianne will find a nation falling in love with her." Read the review at clashmusic.com.
The Irish Times gives the album, its Album of the Week, four stars. La Havas "is right on the money with her debut album. Simply put, class oozes, seeps, drips and trickles out of every track," writes Times reviewer Tony Clayton-Lea. "One reason why La Havas runs rings around her contemporaries and closest rivals is due to the quality of the melodies and the honesty of the lyrics." What's more, says Clayton-Lea, those lyrics are sung by "some of the best soul/pop vocals you’ll probably hear this year." Read the full review at irishtimes.com.
The Irish Independent, giving the album, also the Album of the Week, four stars, says this "eagerly-anticipated debut album does not disappoint." Reviewer John Meagher credits La Havas' voice, describing it as "truly a thing of rare beauty ... She displays an impressive range—yet doesn't feel the need to indulge in vocal gymnastics." Is Your Love Big Enough?, says Meagher, is "an impressive debut." Read more at independent.ie.
The Irish Herald gives the album four stars as well. "Deeper than Adele, more sophisticated than Amy and more street-wise than Joss Stone," writes the Herald's Eamon Carr, "Lianne is quietly adventurous, swinging from bossa-nova (Age) to punk-funk (Forget) and trip-hop soul (Don't Wake Me Up) in the bat of an eyelash ... La Havas weaves art from uncertainty." Read the review at herald.ie.
During a recent stop in the United States, La Havas spoke with the L magazine about the making of the album, her influences, what she's listening to now, and more. You can read the interview at thelmagazine.com. She's also the subject of a "Band Crush" at Nylon magazine; you can read why at nylonmag.com. There's also a photo gallery of the stylish young artist and a conversation about fashion with Lucky magazine at luckmag.com.
To reserve a copy of Is Your Love Big Enough? in the United States with an autographed print and a download of the complete album available starting release day, August 7, head to the Nonesuch Store now. Watch La Havas discuss each track on the album here:
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