In June 2024, south London post-punk absurdists Dry Cleaning took to the stage at Solid Sound, a Chicago festival run by native rock royalty Wilco. Keen to get to work on album three, the band waived their appearance fee for the gig, opting instead to trade their wage for time at Wilco’s iconic studio, The Loft. Written during the frenzied 2024 US presidential election, Secret Love is lined with neatly concealed political commentary, dry wit and vocalist Florence Shaw’s enchanting spoken-word delivery.

The campaign for album three opened with what may be the band’s strongest work to date in ‘Hit My Head All Day’, a catchy, six-minute long piece on which Shaw despairs at the manipulative nature of the politically charged social media content she witnessed during that election. Produced by Cate Le Bon, the project continues on a gritty note, a reflection of the bleak political backdrop against which the album was written. Such abrasiveness is evidenced by the instrumental backing on ‘Rocks’ and the repeated drone of the phrase ‘I don’t give a fuck’ on ‘My Soul/Half Pint’. On ‘Evil Evil Idiot’, Shaw sounds as though she is trying to appease her Scottish listeners as she speaks of her fondness for well-fired rolls over a dingy instrumental.

Conversely, Secret Love also boasts a collection of gentle, melodic offerings. Shaw creates an atmosphere of surrealist romanticism with ‘I Need You’, on which she pines for a partner to scoop her out of a talcum powder box. On the blissfully arresting ‘Let Me Grow And You’ll See The Fruit’, feelings of inadequacy are grappled with over a soothing brass backing. The closer, ‘Joy’, leaves listeners with a powerful parting message for dealing with an increasingly toxic world: ‘Don’t give up on being sweet.’ 

Secret Love is released by 4AD on Friday 9 January.