After the giant-step-forward of 2023's release, Golden Hour, I'll admit that my expectations for JMU's Low Key with its latest 5-song EP were high.

And numerically speaking, this album does improve slightly on my scores from the group's last effort — though the uptick on Repeat Listenability may also be attributable, in part, to the shorter running time.

The improved score for Innovation/Creativity, however, is likely entirely to the credit of the group's then-President, DeJuan Woods, Jr. (class of 2024), whom I singled out back in '23 and who takes solo arranging credit for 80% of this release (and shared credit on the remaining song).

To be fair — perhaps because there isn't other (not as accomplished) work to compare to, as there was last time — Woods' work here is not as remarkable as it sounded before, though it continues to be well-conceived, often inventive, and generally, at all times, groovy. Stylistically, the repertoire showcased here suggests he feels most at home in the land of the straight-ahead pop/r&b with a dance/synth feel. And the Beyoncé opener is perhaps the best manifestation of his skills, featuring a myriad of rhythmic ideas that keep iterating on themselves as the song progresses, as well as the sort of well-rendered, impactful treatment of the bridge, which far too many collegiate groups gloss over or utilize ineffectively. By contrast, Woods introduces a fun rhythmic idea at the top of Church Bells — the main genre/stylistic departure on the album — but to my disappointment, it is quickly abandoned in favor of a pretty conventional treatment of a pretty musically ordinary song. Not done poorly, but somewhat confoundingly, the decision to scale back and mellow out Tears of Gold is also a bit of a headscratcher. But if the intent was to "re-invent", then I almost wish Woods had gone further and dug deeper into his musical bag of tricks to introduce more of the unexpected harmonies and flourishes that caught my attention a few years ago.

My feelings about the soloists are similarly a bit conflicted. Like Woods' arranging, these are all clearly gifted singers and their performances are consistently solid and, in occasional moments, terrific. But their suitability to the solos they've been given comes into question on more than one occasion, often in the back halves of songs when they are called upon to belt, or riff, or wail in their upper registers and the result is a piercing, almost nasal tone that becomes shrill and less enjoyable when it continues for repeated choruses. Indeed, the album's mixer, James Gammon, generally places the solos squarely in the middle of — rather than in front of — the background vocals and one can't help but wonder if that was a choice to help soften the extent to which the soloists are often pushing hard towards the end of each song. In a related vein, the choice of Roman Leonard for As It Was is a bit curious — to be clear, there are literally dozens of songs I could imagine wanting to hear Leonard sing, but their emotive, rich, throaty timbre is an almost-shocking break from the detached, blasé feel of Harry Styles. And if the intent was to take a wholly different, more passionate approach to the song, then that choice is not reflected in the arrangement and the other performances.

So scores notwithstanding, it's a bit of a mixed bag, based primarily on higher expectations. It's a fun listen to be sure, and the group continues to do good work. Despite Woods' graduation last year, I hope Low Key can still find a way to continue to grow and polish its skills, with an eye toward some of the finer details now that the singers built themselves into a group where the basics are no longer in question.

It's still a really great time to be a Low Key fan. Undoubtedly even better to be a Low Key singer.

CUFF IT flexes with its laid back, cooler-than-all-of-us lead William Reeves who covers Beyoncé with ease and grace. The whole piece has an urban disco vibe that feels very right now. Conversely, Carrie Underwood's hit Church Bells gets edgier under lead Aubrey Price. This track also illuminates DeJuan Woods Jr's album arranging style, which leans into a thick sound with lots of lead line support. The details make Church Bells particularly vivid: intense background singers who make sure we clearly hear the pain, and the right emphasis on volume (loving the way the whole group gets suddenly quiet for the first chorus).

I like that As It Was falls in the middle of this release, as lead Roman Leonard is set apart from the rest of the tracks. His voice coloring is unique and memorable — a performer born for the big stage.

Tears of Gold amps up the electricity again with its atmospheric opening and nice touches from Woods Jr — the way the drums fall out for the first chorus to set a new impact level, and the emotional "big moment" designed for lead Sophie Osmani and the group to absolutely send it. Million Dollar Baby closes out NIGHT FALLS with fancy, technical flourishes, reminding us of the skill level of Low Key.

The oldest song on NIGHT FALLS is Carrie Underwood's Church Bells, released in 2016. The rest of this tracklist is from the '20s. There are a few ways to make a non-themed album sound cohesive, and Low Key went for all the boxes: a skilled arranger who touches all the tracks in Woods Jr, one skilled producer in James Gammon, and music from a span not greater than ten years (subjectively speaking from decades of listening to recorded a cappella, a greater emotional connection is heard if the works come from the time you were a teenager/young adult — the last box).

NIGHT FALLS is a solid, sonic achievement from Low Key.

Low Key's 2023 release Golden Hour was a huge improvement over the group's previous releases, and it's great to hear that NIGHT FALLS continues at that same level. This is a solid five-song EP — these singers are dialed in, and the recording sounds uptempo, fun, and polished. All of the songs are arranged (or co-arranged) by DeJuan Woods Jr., which adds a subtle cohesiveness to this collection. Mixed-voiced groups can have a tough time with switching soloists' registers from song to song, but NIGHT FALLS truly sounds like the same group from song to song, no matter who's on the lead.

The one thing that would push this from a "4" to a "5" would be more striking dynamics. Low Key does "big and booming" very well — the climax of Tears of Gold must be goosebump-inducing in concert, and soloist Aubrey Price sounds pained and plaintive on Church Bells, but both songs would be even more compelling if the group could find a way to pull back a key moment to a heartbreaking whisper. The group almost gets there on As It Was with its quieter verse ("go home, get ahead…") but even that doesn't get pulled back as much as it could.

Still: Low Key has delivered well with NIGHT FALLS — a five-song EP full of booming, uptempo numbers. The group truly sounds as if it's having fun on every track here, and that energy shines through in a recording that is genuinely fun to listen to. Not every recording has to break new ground, and Low Key has much to be proud of on this solid, well-performed release.