Prey//IV

On the whole, PREY//IV expresses a dance-when-you're-sad energy that Glass and Kath never quite achieved with Crystal Castles, and that Kath and Glass stand-in Edith Frances have yet to capture since the enigmatic former frontwoman's departure.

An astoundingly honest, and at times brutal, listen, ‘PREY//IV’ still ends on a note of hope.

While the choice to end Prey//IV with its most downcast song might feel like a relinquishing of the power that Glass has claimed, it grounds the album’s brutality in reality, poignantly reminding us that this is a document of Glass’s lived experiences.

‘PREY//IV’ does not shy away from Alice’s story; instead, its imagery is violent and visceral, with portraits of isolation (‘PINNED BENEATH LIMBS’) and self harm (‘BABY TEETH’) riddled throughout an album defined by a sort of constant itchiness, a wish to rid itself of trauma by occupying it so fully.

On PREY//IV, Glass finds a voice that was silenced and distorted by abuse and manipulation; if anything, her first solo full-length can feel overwhelming, boiling over with so many vocal and musical experiments that don’t always cohere.