- After massive songwriting success, Erika de Casier retreats into her world of bedroom R&B but opens up her sound to new ideas and collaborators.
- Last July, a song by K-pop group NewJeans called "Super Shy" went viral in the way that most artists could only dream of: chart success, social media success, even underground dance music success (and cred). It was one of last year's most obvious and ubiquitous pop songs that pretty much any DJ could reach for with a guaranteed good reaction. The mind behind its gliding jungle breaks and clarion vocal melodies was Erika de Casier, the Portugal-born Danish artist who was already something of a dance pop phenom.
Since debuting in 2019, she's collaborated with the likes of Dua Lipa and Shygirl while still working closely with fellow Copenhagen resident and techno producer Central on her own brand of whispery, '00s-inspired R&B. The NewJeans hype surrounding de Casier is something of a red herring. On her third album, Still, she returns to her cloistered world of sensual bedroom pop and glowing ballads. The difference this third time around? Confidence, complexity and a little help from her friends.
Still, despite its Y2K R&B worship, is a different animal than 2021's Sensational. It's more ambitious, for one, produced mostly by de Casier herself with some help from Central and assorted other producers (including Nick León). The LP charts the stages of a relationship from shy to head over heels to vindictive and, in true de Casier fashion, sheepish and shy once again. This is an airier and more ambient take on the throwback style of her past two albums, cushioning some of her sharpest lyrics to date with pillowy synths and gilded strings.
If you're familiar with de Casier, Still will tickle all the pleasure centres you're used to: Darkchild-esque snaky R&B on "Ooh," which references past songs and albums in a cheeky way that makes her sound like an even bigger star than she is. "Ice" calls directly back to "Love Don't Cost A Thing"-era J.Lo with its empowering lyrics and triumphant thrust, plus includes a rare de Casier album guest verse from American rap duo They Hate Change. Blood Orange and Shygirl also make appearances, although both distract from de Casier's exquisite universe rather than add to it. There are plenty of nylon strings and orchestral hits on the reggaeton-influenced "Home Alone," while "Ex-Girlfriend" has the cocky smile of a classic girl group get-back-at-your-ex anthem. These more predictable songs dot the album's narrative like familiar emotional landmarks.
It's where the tropes go off-road that Still reveals a new, stronger de Casier. The stunning "My Day Off" pairs alternately clever and mundane lyrics about doing laundry and sending emails with pseudo-grime instrumentation—rough strings and wildly oscillating bass, with an appropriately melodramatic vocal to match. "The Princess" explores inner neuroses with fabulous confidence while the love song cliché "I want it all" becomes almost gluttonous, almost sinister, but also relatable, moving from romantic to domestic demands: "I wanna be a mom / And still do my job." She offers to send home a sample of herself on the sultry "Test It," and on "Lucky," over a beautiful piano loop, she comes closest to the pure pop brilliance she lent to NewJeans, complete with a hybrid Baltimore club jungle loop underneath.
Still slowly teases and charms, like walking into a warmly lit dive bar or an elegant boudoir. de Casier uses turn-of-the-millennium R&B's distinctive mix of futurism and sensuality as a shared musical language to pull you in. But three albums in, Still feels almost too familiar. The title is meant as a reference to "Still D.R.E." and "Jenny From The Block," defensive postures put out by artists at the height of their fame insisting they weren't changed by it. But de Casier isn't quite there yet, and she'll probably only get more famous from here, which she deserves.
Instead of building on the momentum of her songwriting career, Still pulls her back into her comfort zone, with promising hints of something new waiting in the spaces between. In some ways, it's the best of both worlds: put out mercenary pop in the mainstream and explore something deeper and more personal on your own. If anyone can pull it off this delicate balance, it's de Casier.
Tracklist01. Right This Way
02. Home Alone
03. Lucky
04. The Princess
05. ice feat. They Hate Change
06. Test It
07. ooh
08. Believe It
09. Anxious
10. Ex-Girlfriend feat. Shygirl
11. Toxic
12. My Day Off
13. Twice feat. Blood Orange
14. Someone