9/10

When Lorde released her debut album 'Pure Heroine' back in 2013, we thought that we were never going to hear the end of her. With an almost infinite amount of radio-friendly singles, all wrapped in a bleak and instantly identifiable production, the record propelled her into the international superstar she is today. But now looking to follow up such a massive success, the New Zealander has almost gone back to the drawing board with her sound and returned as an almost completely different artist.

Opening with the uncharacteristicly energetic 'Green Light', the record unravels this tangled web of diverse influences that aim to show a more musically dextrous Lorde. While her voice still brings out the identity within her music, this eclectic mix of production has helped her step away from her comfort zone and deliver an album that has exceeded most of our expectations, given the creative mountain she has had to climb in making it.

'Melodrama' sits within that perfect realm of being familiar to her older work but also completely fresh and interesting at the same time. It should be held up as the shining example of how to follow up such a massive debut album without resorting to rehashing the original.