Album Review: Banks

Jillian Banks was assumed to be a Lana / Lorde rip-off when she materialised with her 2014 debut, Goddess. Her cause wasn’t helped by that record’s exhaustingly glossy production – a flaw which likewise bedevils its follow-up.

Somewhere within Altar a deeply interesting album is struggling to break free. Alas, flashes of inspiration are buried beneath a crowd-pleasing sheen that does Banks no favours. She’s best when waxing strident, as evidenced by recent singles ‘Gemini Feed’ and ‘Fuck With Myself’.

But these sparks are obscured by an ocean of formula, which reaches its nadir on the Alicia Keys-esque ‘Judas’ and a tepid, flailing ‘Weaker Girl’. Banks may yet be a star – but she will flourish as an artist only if she is allowed to let her demons off the leash.