- Genre: 'Pop'
- Release Date: '4th September 2026'
Our Rating:
So what’s Natalie Imbruglia been up to these last twenty-eight years or so since the release of her debut, ‘Left of the Middle’, eh? You might be forgiven for thinking she’d been lying low. Certainly, she’s been occupied with the things that most people find themselves embroiled with, namely family lie and the like. And while she’s been largely out of the limelight for some time, in the wake of that album – which was largely eclipsed by THAT single release, which is something of a shame, since the rest of the album was pretty solid – she’s actually been keeping busy with five subsequent albums and some TV work, including ‘The Masked Singer’ and the last ever episode of ‘Neighbours’. However, it’s only lately she’s really hit UK media again, talking about the challenges of being a single parent and juggling commitments on the eve of the release of her seventh album, ‘Algorithm’.
There’s no question that she’s led an interesting and varied life, with some high-profile dating partners, a marriage and a divorce, a diagnosis of ADHD and obsessive-compulsive disorder in adult life, and a daughter by IVF from an unnamed donor. For me, there’s an additional level of interest in that not only did I grow up with ‘Neighbours’, but I have a certain curiosity about artists, musicians, celebrities of my own age. I feel a certain empathy, while at the same time wanting to place the mirror of their success on my life of failure. Or something.
‘Algorithm’ is described as a personal record, as well as one which marks the start of ‘a new era – one defined by empowerment, freedom and creative fulfilment’. And perhaps this is where age and experience really do make a difference. Sure, she had input from producer Fraser T Smith (Adele, Dave, Stormzy, Sam Smith) and Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody, notably on the closing song, ‘Beautiful Love’, but there’s a sense that ‘Algorithm’ is an album she’s made for herself rather than anyone else. And yes, it’s a pop album, but it’s savvy, sassy, self-aware, and analytical. ‘You need love and she needs drama / I need catastrophe’ she sings on ‘Catastrophe’, which is one of a raft of solid tunes which are breezy, but not necessarily light. It’s a bit electro, a bit glam, a bit experimental, even, as is nowhere more apparent than on the title track. ‘Breathe With the Fire Lola’ taps into a Donna Summer kind of groove, and the aforementioned ‘Beautiful Love’ goes spinning, euphoric.
‘Algorithm’ is an unexpectedly quirky effort, both musically and lyrically. Yes, there are some straight-up dancey pop tunes like ‘Sounds Like it Feels’, which feel a bit bland and a little dated, but they’re few and far between, and are more than compensated by more exploratory cuts like ‘Jesus on Mars’ and the tense, taut ‘Endgame’.
