Not long after releasing her 2017 singles Dearly Beloved and Dont Want You Back, Kieszas career -- and life -- took a major detour. When a taxi crashed into the car she was riding in, she sustained a traumatic brain injury that took months to recover from and left her with lingering fatigue, memory, and vision problems. After everything shes been through, its easy to root for Kiesza, but on its own terms, her second album Crave is an unqualified success. Considering how hard she had to work to make music again, its not surprising that shes become a more focused and polished singer and songwriter. Even more impressively, she makes it sound effortless: When Boys Cry, a bouncy exploration of male vulnerability that resembles the Bangles cover of Iko Iko, boasts pithy, vivid lyrics like Boys try to tell the world that theyre fine/But boys lie/Their tears fall between the lines. Theres a newfound lightness and brightness to songs such as Cant Be Saved, where the dramatic breakdowns, soaring choruses, and abundant gated drums prove shes as committed to breathing new life into 80s and 90s dance-pop as she was on her 2014 hit Hideaway. That song proved she had an understanding of that eras sounds that was deeper than many of her peers, and touches like Run Renegades slapping synth bass are still enough to give listeners of a certain age some serious deja vu. While her style may be rooted in the past, Crave finds Kiesza looking forward. Not only does she deliver a flawless freestyle homage with Love Me with Your Lie, jams like All of the Feelings and Sky Aint the Limit are just as joyous as anything released by Carly Rae Jepsen, Betty Who, or Kimbra. Crave is also a remarkably concise album, adding to the impression that Kiesza doesnt want to waste any more time. Each of its songs feels intentional, and whether shes reveling in the melodrama of Love Never Dies or leaving it behind on the giddy rave/hip-hop fusion of Dance with Your Best Friend, its different facets come together in a way thats more organic and satisfying than on Sound of a Woman. A triumphant return for longtime fans and a winning introduction for newcomers, Crave shows Kiesza has only gotten better at reinventing the idealism and big emotions of a bygone era for another generation. ~ Heather Phares

Rovi