Nabihah Iqbal
Weighing of the Heart
Release Date: Dec 1, 2017
Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock
Record label: Ninja Tune
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Album Review: Weighing of the Heart by Nabihah Iqbal
Very Good, Based on 4 Critics
Based on rating 4/5
F or the last few years, Nabihah Iqbal has been confecting bright and airy electronica as producer Throwing Shade. For her debut album, she bursts out from between the synths with a warm and fuzzy vocal-led collection of tracks that nod to both New Order-ish post-punk and the intimate dream pop of the early 90s. The record also recalls fellow Londoners Real Lies, whose layering of street-lamp lit synths and gutter/stars portraits of the city echo in tracks like Zone 1 to 6000.
Based on rating 7.7/10
On May 3, 1993, New Order released Republic, their long-awaited sixth studio album. A month later, it was joined in the stores by Souvlaki, the second long player from Reading shoegazers Slowdive. The British producer and DJ Nabihah Iqbal was a child at the time, but her debut album sits on a stylistic shelf between them. Weighing of the Heart is first full-length from Iqbal to not bear her former moniker, Throwing Shade, the modish alter ego that she inhabited from 2009 to mid-2017.
Based on rating 7/10
In Ancient Egypt it was believed that when a person died, they would be judged on their behaviour as a mortal before being granted a place in the afterlife, judged in a process known as the weighing of the heart. The heart was believed to have been the centre of thought, memory and emotion. If the deceased was guilty of wrongdoings, the weighing scales would tip and their hearts would be eaten by Ammit, a terrifying beast that sat next to the device of judgement and would cease to exist at all.
Based on rating 5/10
After performing under the moniker Throwing Shade, Nabihah Iqbal has embraced her given name for the release of her debut LP, Weighing of the Heart. With the name change also comes a stylistic shift; here, Iqbal moves away from the glittery dance-pop she first experimented with in to a more instrument-based approach, with prominent guitar and keys mingling with the gossamer haze of the album. While it's an interesting new direction for Iqbal, Weighing of the Heart often feels like two albums competing, vacillating between a new wave ….
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