Gossip issues a defiant and life-affirming return twelve years in the making with their sixth studio album Real Power. For the record, the trio — still comprised of powerhouse vocalist Beth Ditto, multi-instrumentalist Brace Paine, and manic drummer Hannah Blilie — reunited with producer Rick Rubin for the first time since 2009. Before the indie rock heroes head to Europe for a slew of summer dates, you can catch Gossip in Brooklyn on March 26, followed by their U.S. festival debut at Just Like Heaven 2024 where we fully expect them to give a barnburner of a set alongside several other nostalgia-soaked bands.
Real Power finds Gossip at its most ecstatically virulent, melding together soul-baring rollickers with the inextinguishable delirium of disco-tinged melodies. It begins with the exulted bittersweetness that bursts from “Act Of God” as Ditto cavorts between the grace and terror of a love that has started to falter. “If your heart ain’t in it / I can feel,” she howls with tragic knowing. “There has been a change in you / But I can’t read your mind.”
From there, the band seeks out an incandescent affection and devotion with which to warm themselves. There’s the promise of radiant escape that spirals hypnotically within the swooning hooks of “Edge Of The Sun” or the impassioned invitation to kindle the beginnings of a sparked romance on “Light It Up.” Their restless and breathless search reaches a sublime boiling point on the jittery anthem “Give It Up For Love” as funked-out guitars bristle in the background.
Both singles — the thundering euphoria of the title track “Real Power” and the madcap exuberance that sprints out of “Crazy Again” — unsurprisingly emerge as two of the record’s blissful pinnacles. “I’m fragile at the moment / Heart of glass / I’d rather be alone,” Ditto confesses as she switch-foots between boisterous passion and guarded intimacy. “Then spend nights awake wonderin’ / Lookin’ back.”
Even when confronting heartbreaking truths, as in the sobering but fearsomely rapt “Tell Me Something,” the trio never fails to galvanize their spirits toward a more fulfilling future. “What do you get for someone who has everything / Who can never be satisfied?” Ditto asks painfully before answering herself with unwavering clarity: “When your heart‘s not in love, but it‘s time to give up / Time to move on with your life.”
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At its superheated core, Real Power surges as a triumphant ode to the formidable ways music and camaraderie can bolster the heart in the face of innumerable changes. Peering back at the gulf of time that recedes behind them—an abundance of personal loss and growth in tow—Gossip confirms that it is never too late to successfully rally oneself for a new phase of life.
Words: Steven Ward
Real Power is out now on all streaming platforms. Catch Gossip live at Just Like Heaven this May in Pasadena, CA.
Visit Gossip on their website and Instagram to stay updated on new releases and tour announcements.
Listen to Real Power the new album from Gossip below!
Real Power
Gossip
Columbia Records
March 22, 2024
01 Act Of God
02 Real Power
03 Don’t Be Afraid
04 Crazy Again
05 Edge Of The Sun
06 Give It Up For Love
07 Turn The Card
08 Tell Me Something
09 Light It Up
10 Tough
11 Peace and Quiet
