Evann McIntosh - Character Development (2021) Hi-Res

Character Development is more than just Evann McIntosh’s transfixing new album; it’s their way of life. Written and recorded primarily in the breakout 17-year-old star’s suburban Kansas bedroom, the collection mixes dark alt-pop and dreamy R&B with streaks of hip-hop, jazz, and funk, calling to mind everything from Prince to Billie Eilish as it grapples with growth and evolution, gender identity and sexuality, freedom and self-expression. The writing here is as insightful as it is unpredictable, alternating between earnest poeticism and playful acrobatics, and the production is similarly adventurous, with McIntosh’s longtime collaborator Jesty Beatz once again wrapping their performances in lush, magnetic arrangements. Even at its most densely layered, though, the album remains a work of pure intimacy, a poignant and revealing portrait of modern adolescence from an artist unraveling the mysteries of their psyche one song at a time.