Review: James Vincent McMorrow - True Care is a sublime, abstracted gift that keeps on giving'

4/5

Surprise album ‘drops’ are a bit old hat in 2017. They’re also risky and presumptuous. It’s one thing for Beyoncé to spring a new LP upon the world. But what if you’re James Vincent McMorrow a cult figure who, while quite popular in Ireland, has yet to make meaningful waves internationally? Is there a danger his fourth long player, unleashed with little warning this week, will be met with a collective shoulder shrug?

McMorrow unveiled True Care on Thursday night with a live performance streamed on Facebook — a flourish of a piece with the project’s sci-fi sensibility. In the press release announcing the record, the Dublin-based singer explained he was “writing towards the date December 2914”. That sounds more like a plot point from David Lynch’s new Twin Peaks than a concept around which to build a soul-pop collection but, whatever the background logic, True Care is an act of sublime wonder.