7/10

Over this past decade, Manchester's Sukh has always looked to pursue a more emotive edge than many of his contemporaries. Coupling warm and passionate compositions with this riveting approach to sound and production with everything he does, these last few years have certainly been a great time for his innovation and self-discovery. And after the rousing response to his highly-praised 2022 LP 'Age Of Strangers', he is now back to his best with his stellar new album 'Heading East', a record that sees him explore a more vibrant aesthetic throughout.

Marking a stark departure from his previous full-length, 'Heading East' sees him embrace classic songwriting, adopting a meditation on long term relationships and companionate love. Moving with this warm and elegant grace from start to finish, his newest collection aims to present itself as one of his more lofty listening experiences to date. Capturing this brilliantly diverse approach to genre and direction, mixed with a lively pace as often as possible, Sukh finds himself in one of his most adventurous guises to date, one that almost feels like a new beginning for him as well.

He has certainly left a lasting impression on the scene in recent years, but 'Heading East' shows he is still brimming with plenty of new and interesting ideas in which to develop. With such a confident approach to his songwriting once again, Sukh remains one of the more inventive names rising through the ranks right now.