A master of reinvention, Thao Nguyen has done it again. After exploring '90s alt-rock sounds, dramatic dance pop and hip-hop/folk hybrids, she's now chilling out—sonically, at least. Lyrically, she remains as thoughtful and self-probing as ever, questioning how to bridge the cultural gap between her background and who she is now. On the grabbing title track, which unfurls on a prowling rhythm, she dissects the brutal ripping apart of her home country by the Vietnam war: "I lost my city in the light of day/ Thick smoke, helicopter blades/ Why would I bother to remember when our people, baby, die and live again?" The slinky "Phenom" rides a pulsing bass, with Nguyen coming on like Peaches with sophisticated restraint. "Lion on the Hunt" and "Rational Animal" recalls an edgier Morcheeba. Throughout, there are delightful surprises: the bright keyboards and guitar of "How Could I"; the pops of percussion rattling like silverware in a kitchen drawer on "Lion on the Hunt"; the woozy lullaby vibe of closer "Marrow." © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz