Fred Again..'s 'Actual Life 2' Is a Mesmerizing Demonstration of What Dance Music Is and Can Be
Music, at its core, is a reflection of the artist. And nowhere does that sentiment ring more true than in the works of British auteur Fred Again..
Taking a unique dairyesque approach to electronic music, the British artist and producer crafts sonic collages that double as snapshots into his life and distinctively human club music. It's this intoxicating cocktail of far-ranging emotions and euphoric dance music that comes to life in his sophomore album, Actual Life 2 (February 2 - October 15 2021).
On Actual Life 2, the British artist and producer chronicles a period of life through transcendent house and kaleidoscopic sound bites that give off both the impression of being an avid crate digger and fly on the wall. It's a tender follow-up to his debut work, which featured the breakout The Blessed Madonna-assisted ode to the loss of club culture in the wake of the pandemic, "Marea (We've Lost Dancing)," that pushes forward what dance music is and can be.
Actual Life 2 balances its soaring highs with palpable moments of transient beauty. It's the sonic equivalent of piecing together a year, relaying to friends and found family all those impossible to perfectly capture instances where you felt limitless and those grounding reminders that solidified for you the splendor to be found in the seemingly mundane. Whether it's on the driving soundscapes of "Roze (Forgive)," "Faisal (Envelops Me)," and "Billie (Loving Arms)" or in the surprisingly bittersweet rework of a one-off Kodak Black freestyle on "Kahan (Last Year)," Fred Again.. never fails to capture the magnificence of everyday life.
Actual Life 2 is an album that is equally as poignant whether shared over a pint with friends, dancing alone in your room, or scoring a rapturous night out losing yourself on the dancefloor. This is a project of life, a tribute to the grand vastness that is the human experience.
Listen to Actual Life 2 (February 2 - October 15 2021) below:
