The Art of Loving by Olivia Dean

Released on 26/09/2025 by PLG - Capitol
Main artists: Olivia Dean
Genre: Pop

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Schooled in the ways of Aretha, Gladys and Roberta—not to mention Adele and Amy Winehouse—26-year-old Olivia Dean is right on time for a new neo-retro wave, albeit with smoother contours than Lola Young and less show-girl bravado than Raye. Dean's soulful alto is silky smooth, no runs or frills needed, on her second album. (And speaking of Adele: Dean is the first female British artist to have three simultaneous Top 10 hits on the U.K. charts since that powerhouse.) The Art of Loving, thematically, was inspired by the bell hooks book All About Love, in which the essayist floats the idea that students should study love in school—so that humans treat it, as Dean recently said, "as less of a fantasy that's going to happen to you one day and more of a practice and a craft." Dean's lyrics, and the overall vibe here, are pragmatic and plainspoken, but that's not to say there's no magic. "She's always changing me without a word/ And I was just, I was just getting used to her," she sings on "Lady Lady," a song about being thrown for a loop by a higher power or Mother Nature or karma, but trusting that the destination is worth the journey. With vibey horns and keyboards that evoke satisfying '80s adult contemporary, the whole thing feels confident even as Dean's words are vulnerable. "Loud," featuring Dean accompanied by deceptively simple acoustic guitar, finds her turning over a story of heartbreak like a multi-faceted stone. "The silence is so loud," she sings as the music drops out and the void casts a chill. Later, her voice swells along with strings: "And you weren't allowed/ To come around and throw my heart about/ To turn me on just to turn me down." On smoky "Close Up," Dean sets the scene—"Now I'm more than a voice on the phone/ Now I'm here and we're finally alone"—before asking, like a detective, "Why do we feel so distant?" There's something bewitching in the way she sings the word why in a low growl, suspicious and guarded, as well as how each line ends with a pop of horn punctuation: a question mark and exclamation point side by side. Dean experiments with contrasts, pouring her voice like warm liquid over the crisp rhythm of "Let Alone the One You Love" and refusing to be rushed by the persistently skittering pulse of "Something In Between." "So Easy (To Fall in Love)" blurs the line between samba and bossa nova. "A Couple Minutes" is lush, Motown-style balladry. "Nice to Each Other" is surprisingly Fleetwood Mac-esque. Peppy "Man I Need"—Dean's first entry on the Billboard Hot 100—is as bright and joyous as a sunny summer morning. And "I've Seen It" is a jewel-box delight that suggests both minor-key McCartney and a nimble snippet of Bill Withers melody. © Shelly Ridenour/Qobuz

The Art of Loving

Olivia Dean

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The Art of Loving (Intro)

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Olivia Dean, MainArtist, Vocalist, ComposerLyricist - Bastian Langebæk, Producer, Piano, ComposerLyricist - Zach Nahome, AdditionalProducer, SynthFX, Producer, Programmer - Max Wolfgang, AdditionalProducer, ComposerLyricist - Nick Taylor, StringEngineer - Rosie Danvers, StringArranger, Cello - Wired Strings, Strings - Tommy Danvers, StringProducer - Patrick Kiernan, Violin - Zahra Benyounes, Violin - Kerenza Peacock, Violin - Michael Trainor, Violin - Jenny Sacha, Violin - Sarah Sexton, Violin - Hayley Pomfrett, Violin - Charis Jenson, Violin - Meghan Cassidy, Viola - Emma Owens, Viola - Bryony James, Cello - Charlie Holmes, MixingEngineer - Matt J Barnes, AdditionalMixingEngineer - Simon Francis, MasteringEngineer