6/10

Over the last few decades, Blur guitarist Graham Coxon has taken on some wild and adventurous projects. Since originally leaving his formative group in the early 2000s, he has since churned out a bundle of solo records, all of which seem to take on their own distinct path and given him an unpredictable reputation ever since. But for his latest project Superstate, it feels like he is beginning to get used to the idea of trying something new at any given opportunity and unveils its self-titled debut album, a record that sees him just as explorative as ever.

But this new venture is only part of the story as 'Superstate' is merely the audio soundtrack to a graphic novel of the same name he has been working on, giving this release a more conceptual feel than most. Narrating the narrative of another medium has always had a mixed appreciation from those on the outside, and this new work seems to be no different. Taking us down a broad and glittering avenue of funk and alt-pop textures throughout this new collection, we get to experience a world-building exercise through song, something that very few attempt but Coxon seems to have a focus and drive for.

The post modern dystopia that he has built on this release makes for some fascinating moments, even if it doesn't always flow together as well as it should. Superstate is a brave and creative concept that takes some interesting left-turns during its runtime, but is not something we could find ourselves returning to in a hurry.