Album Review: Alice Russell - To Dust

Alice Russell is one of Britain's most ubiquitous soul singers. While To Dust is only her third studio album proper, she's an unstoppable session vocalist. Her work has graced productions from Fatboy Slim, David Byrne, Mr Scruff, Quantic, Nostalgia 77 and countless others.

The main gripe with such frequently employed vocalists is usually their lack of personality. This is not the case with Russell. To Dust is a relatively idiosyncratic record. Kicking off with a twisted alphabetical romantic narrative A To Z, it's actually quite a weird little funk album. The title track sounds something like a cross between a classic Bond theme and early Joy Division.

Unfortunately, it's all still a bit disposable. There's something strange and exciting writhing at the heart of tunes like I Loved You and Let Go (Breakdown). Similarly, more conventional numbers like Heartbreaker, Heartbreaker Pt 2 and Hard & Strong are rich and powerful songs. Yet, there's something that holds Russell and To Dust back from their obvious potential.

It all feels a touch rushed. There are so many different and contrasting ideas vying for space. Even within the songs themselves, there is an abundance of instrumentation and arrangement quirks (Hard & Strong's staccato string section, for example). As a result, nothing really has much impact. Perhaps unsurprisingly for such a prolific collaborator, To Dust has the feel of a compilation of singles or experiments. Which isn't a terrible thing, really. There are some great moments and songs to be enjoyed on To Dust. Russell is simply capable of more. It's disappointing to hear only the shadow of that potential.