Album Review: Oklou- Choke Enough

Amidst the currently thriving alt-pop landscape, French electronic and pop artist Oklou’s debut studio album manages to carve a uniquely ethereal niche defined by melodic and rhythmic subtlety. 

choke enough opens with “endless”, an atmospheric slow burner with one of the album’s best hooks. It immerses the listener into the world of choke enough with an understated elegance that remains constant throughout the album’s meticulously arranged 13 songs and 35 minutes. 

Though Oklou’s previous work has featured a notably restrained sound in contrast to her PC music contemporaries, songs like “god’s chariots” and “girl on my throne” from 2020’s brilliant mixtape Galore leveraged a modest sass that warranted vague comparisons to the likes of Caroline Polachek and Charli XCX. choke enough, on the other hand, distinguishes Oklou from her alt-pop peers by applying a dense reverb to her signature low-key singing. The album’s percussion is gentle, underpinning the nostalgic dejectedness of standouts like “want to wanna come back” and “blade bird.” Meanwhile, a sort of happy nostalgia slowly builds in songs like “Ict” and the title track, whose linearities result in satisfying sonic conclusions towards their ends. 

choke enough doesn’t demand close attention, but rather politely requests it. Those who play it in the background will grasp nothing more than vague traces of a vibe. But for those who afford it their undivided attention, baroque arrangements and progressive song structures will reveal themselves, illuminating the record’s unassuming complexity. 

Though the weakest songs (“family and friends”, “harvest sky”) ultimately feel sterile, they are enhanced by what surrounds them in the tracklist — one of choke enough’s greatest strengths is its sequencing. The album’s beginning excitedly foregrounds what's to come, the middle is the most cathartic, and the end is satisfying and emotionally conclusive. It's a very intentional journey.   

In a Pitchfork interview, Oklou explained her preference for English over French lyrics, explaining how English frees her of the pressures of her native tongue, allowing her to have more fun. This comes through very clearly. None of these songs are necessarily specific in their subject matter; instead, they coalesce into a loosely strewn collage of existential pondering and sentimental imagery. 

You get the sense that Oklou feels overwhelmed by the pace at which her life is moving; her lyrics worry about the future and yearn for the past. And yet somehow choke enough feels anchored in the present, a landmark pop event à la Desire, I Want to Turn Into You, BRAT, and EUSEXUA, whose singular aesthetic will similarly become a touchstone of the fantastic alt-pop output of the mid-2020s. 

Best songs: “ict”, “endless”, “choke enough”, “want to wanna come back”

-DJ Minor Sky AKA Ryan Ades