7/10

It seems strange for us to be talking about MNEK's debut album in 2018, given that the frontman has been releasing a diverse selection of crowd-pleasing bangers for years now. But despite the chart success of his past, the frontman has used his debut full-length to showcase his true personality, opting to keep its content current and looking to normalise the black homosexuality in his music, which until now may not have been as clear as it has been in the years prior.

From the start, 'Language' is almost one of those meta-releases that likes to reference the fact that he has been around for years but people still don't know how to pronounce his name properly. The humorous skits that run throughout this release only humanise his character, making the release far more inviting than the music could do alone. Keeping the record's production very succinct, the album channels to future-RnB sound the frontman has been adopting in the most recent months and delivers a camp but incredibly engaging release in the process.

It may have been a long time coming, but this certainly feels like the MNEK he wants the world to see, a confident and well-rounded songwriter that knows his path and plans to walk it no matter what. 'Language' may not be the banger-factory we were hoping for, but it still hits all the right notes when it needs to.