Sex Education

The soundtrack for the first two seasons of the popular British comedy-drama of the same name, Sex Education features all of the original material created by Furman for the program, as well as a handful of notable songs culled from past studio efforts like Day of the Dog and The Year of No Returning. No stranger to the social and emotional perils of being a teenager, Furman taps into his own experiences with alienation and navigating sexual identity with the wit, wisdom, and fierce emotional acuity of someone for whom the rearview mirror is still sometimes filled with strange headlights. The new tracks were recorded in-between sessions for 2019s savage Twelve Nudes, and that punk spirit -- minus the needle in the red decibels -- seeps into standout cuts like Early Rain, Im Coming Clean, and Devil or Angel, the latter of which sees Furman adopting an inspired, Bowie-esque sock-hop persona. Also included is his lovely and sparse 2015 cover of LCD Soundsystems I Can Change, which features one of his best and most vulnerable vocal takes to date. Above all, a warm throughline of empathy courses through the 19-song set, with tender acoustic numbers like Splash of Light and Every Feeling, and nervy rockers such as Love you So Bad -- from the excellent Perpetual Motion People -- and Restless Year -- from the even better Transangelic Exodus -- dovetailing into emotionally satisfying moments that evoke John Hughes by way of Wes Anderson. ~ James Christopher Monger