Belong

In the six years since Jay Som’s critically acclaimed sophomore album <i>Anak Ko</i>, Melina Duterte has kept the kind of schedule that would strike fainter hearts with exhaustion. There’s been collaborations with Troye Sivan, beabadoobee and Lucy Dacus; production credits across scores of indie records; a whole album with Palehørse’s El Kempner as Bachelor; and extensive touring as part of boygenius’ live band. With all this palling around, it’s not surprising that her third album as Jay Som features some high-powered collaborations: Jimmy Eat World’s Jim Adkins joins in for the surging emo-pop of “Float”, while the chugging alt-rock anthem “Past Lives” features contributions from Paramore’s Hayley Williams.

But <i>Belong</i> also finds Duterte picking up exactly where she left off with Jay Som’s recorded catalogue, her trademark sense of intimacy and intricate arrangements left fully intact. From the tick-tock guitars of “Casino Stars” to the open-air wistfulness of “Appointments”, Duterte continues to develop her own brand of close-mic’d emotionalism even as her star has grown ever brighter across the 2020s.