With each of his albums, Mika lets his listeners a little further into his world. Though he took a few years off from making music between 2015s No Place in Heaven and My Name Is Michael Holbrook, it was all in preparation to give fans some of his most direct and most autobiographical music. In much the same way that the rejection he faced from labels early in his career spurred him to make his smash hit Grace Kelly, Mikas disillusionment with the music industry sparked My Name Is Michael Holbrook. From its straightforward title to its upfront lyrical confessions, the album is steeped in the kind of honesty that makes intimacy -- whether its between two people or an artist and his audience -- possible. Its also the kind of honesty that reflects Mikas age. When he released My Name Is Michael Holbrook, he was in his mid-thirties, a time when being true to yourself becomes more important than ever. Fittingly, there are plenty of quintessentially Mika moments here: Platform Ballerinas proves he still has as much of a way with catchy pop that dances to its own beat as he did in the Grace Kelly days. The suite-like album opener Tiny Love, which celebrates loves everyday joys with tender piano passages and brass fanfares, is an equally intimate and grand microcosm of his music. The albums self-aware songwriting also reflects Mikas maturity. On Dear Jealousy, he captures how a relationship with an emotion is just as real -- and sometimes longer-lasting -- than those with other people, and sets it to a slinky groove. Frequently, Mika leans into the more traditional side of his music on My Name Is Michael Holbrook. Earlier in his career, a song like Cry might have been hyperkinetic; here, its a smoothly funky standout. He also manages to find fresh angles on time-tested piano balladry in Ready to Call This Loves mix of hope and hesitancy and in the affectionate details on Paloma, a song inspired by his sister. Mika tempers all of this maturity with joyous sensuality on the roller disco jam Ice Cream, the breezy glamour of Sanremo, and the romantic hedonism of Tomorrow. While Mika may have balanced these themes and sounds a little more deftly on No Place in Heaven, My Name Is Michael Holbrook is never less than witty and genuine -- and much more enjoyable than if hed tried to fit into someone elses mold. ~ Heather Phares

Rovi