FKA twigs has once again proved her status as a visionary with the release of her newest album, “EUSEXUA.” Made complete with unique and provocative visuals, a focused concept, and of course, beautiful music, the record reaches the perfect balance of meticulous execution and raw emotion. 

Twigs is known by fans and critics alike for her distinctive, mixed-genre sound and creative aesthetics. This is seen in the acclaimed album “MAGDALENE” from 2019, from which the  devastating ballad “cellophane” gained the artist many new fans. Recently, the track “oh my love,” from “CAPRISONGS” also became a niche hit on TikTok as the release of “EUSEXUA” became imminent.

The first taste of the new album was given all the way back on Sept. 13, 2024, when Twigs announced “EUSEXUA” and released the title track as its lead single. In the Instagram post announcing the album, Twigs wrote, “EUSEXUA is a practice / EUSEXUA is a state of being / EUSEXUA is the pinnacle of human experience.” “Eusexua,” a word invented by Twigs, is her philosophy and practice. More than euphoria, eusexua is the meditative and beautiful moment of transcendence, the rush of feeling as inspiration strikes, losing your sense of time while dancing in a club — it differs from person to person.

Even though the multitude of meanings for eusexua may be slightly confusing, the release of the title track on the same day as the album’s announcement immediately made the new word make sense. The song’s transcendental sound and emotion evoke a feeling that can only be described as eusexua, as the listener’s surroundings disappear and only a euphoric state of mind is left behind. Twigs’ floating vocals help sell the experience, declaring, “If they ask you, say you feel it, but don’t call it love — eusexua.” 

The later two singles, “Perfect Stranger” and “Drums of Death,” provided a more electronic, upbeat version of eusexua. Although these three songs were the only releases between the album’s announcement and its release four months later on Jan. 24 — a very long wait — they each offered their own captivating themes and sounds of eusexua.  

Twigs stated in an interview with Margeaux Labat (@marg.mp3) that “EUSEXUA” is not a nightclub or rave album, but an album about how these places make her feel. However, don’t be mistaken, that does not mean there are no danceable songs. Listen to the pounding drum beats and addicting vocal melodies on “Drums of Death” and it is impossible not to at least sway your head around. Or, dance to the peculiar “Childlike Things,” a catchy and lighthearted track featuring the one and only North West — yes, that North West. 

There is a lot to say about North West, the daughter of Kim Kardashian and Ye West, appearing on an album marketed as the magnum opus of Twigs’ career. For one, the song is sonically a strange switch-up from the rest of the album, with bubblegum melodies of “dun, dun, dun” and North West rapping in Japanese. Translated, West’s lyrics include “My name is North-chan” and “Jesus is the one and only true God” — lyrics completely unrelated to Twig’s words on parting and fantasies. I can’t confidently claim that one of her parents paid a lot of money for the feature, but it just makes no sense that Twigs would ask a non-artist, 11-year-old celebrity child to feature on this otherwise phenomenal, serious body of work. The song still sounds good on its own, though, even if it doesn’t quite fit the general sound of the album.

Twigs undoubtedly creates her own, diverse sound on “EUSEXUA,” but there are clear influences from other artists, including Björk for the song “Room of Fools.” The vocals at the end of the song are funky and choral like Björk’s are, proving how talented of a vocalist Twigs is at experimenting with different sounds. It is Twigs’ voice that shines most on the album, even with the stellar production behind it, because her angelic sound smoothly and intentionally glides through the often-minimal lyrics.

Upon my first listen of the record, I concluded that the album was a little one-note, as most of the songs seemed to reach a similar climax of heavy electronic drums with little variation in sound. However, immediately after my next listen, and during the subsequent few afterward, I realized just how wrong I was. Each song has such interesting production elements that are so exact, which boom and crunch together to drive each song forward. For example, the end of “Striptease” involves intricately arranged instrumentals that pulsate in and out in a very satisfying manner.

The album concludes with the song “Wanderlust,” a comparatively bare ballad, whose preachy, anthemic nature feels like an odd choice to finish off the epic project. The song is definitely beautiful and provides a nice message about escape and freedom, but it is a little boring in comparison to the rest of the album. Similarly to “Childish Things,” “Wanderlust” is a decent song but fairly unfitting, with cliché lyrics like “You’ve one life to live, do it freely” and unnecessarily meta opening lines.

Even after listening to the full 11 tracks, “Eusexua” itself still proves to be the best song on the album. It just perfectly captures the feeling that FKA twigs set out to provoke, and, therefore, was the perfect choice to introduce listeners to the idea, both at the start of the album and the start of the release schedule. No other song matches its grandiosity, although other tracks are close seconds, such as “Perfect Stranger” and “Girl Feels Good.”

“EUSEXUA” is exactly the listening experience that it is intended to be. The album is emotional, catchy, groovy, and technically impressive, and creates its own world with a unique sound, concept, and even a logo. I’m not sure the album will gain enough popularity for eusexua to get a dictionary entry, but music fans will, and should, surely be talking about this album for a long time.