“You said you don’t love me like that / Now I’m stuck here standing in the rain / You said I don’t need you like that / But I do, but I do” Tyrone Lindqvist dejectedly sings above the sounds of rain and a gospel choir on ‘Brighter’, the opening track for Rufus’s new album Bloom. It’s an unexpectedly delicate intro that immediately pricks the ears.

The lyrical dialogue of vulnerability and yearning for loved ones reverberates throughout, although, is triumphed by the positive notion of being reunited with them in time. Of course, the gospel choir and dance-y beats also assist with said positivity.

‘Hypnotised’, a downtempo duet, adds a more intimate facet. The track features vocals by Dena Amy who echoes Lindqvist’s longing for togetherness. “You, you appeared / From the night my dear / Like I was home”.

The band’s intention of writing slow, patient songs is most evident with the glorious, nine-and-a-half-minute, warbling ‘Innerbloom’. If I am ever in need of a musical journey, this is the song that will take me along the scenic route, so to speak.

Bloom manages to effortlessly interweave a pacifying, dreamy sound with one a little darker and heavier – any track would be worthy a play at a Berlin club; the city in which the album was inspired, or a Summer festival. This is an album that gets better and better with every press of the replay button.

Rating: 9/10

Written by Laura Cheshire