Album Review: Vicious Delicious By Luvcat

Image courtesy of Sonic PR

After multiple hit single releases, including ‘Matador’, ‘He’s My Man’ and ‘Dinner @ Brasserie Zedel’, Liverpool’s very own Luvcat has unveiled her highly anticipated debut album, Vicious Delicious. Even without its perfectly timed Halloween release, Vicious Delicious is the kind of album that can make any time of the year feel as though the air is haunted - but then again, that’s just the world Luvcat lives in. She welcomes us into her realm where love and obsession blur together, becoming their own twisted love language, where strangers find romance while dancing on black and white tiles stained with blood. Luvcat’s ability to convey this deadly cabaret aesthetic into her music is clearly prevalent throughout the album, and it is remarkable to see a debut artist with such an established and defined sense of identity.

Multiple songs chronicle Luvcat’s rendezvous with men of every kind; her viral hit ‘Matador’ captures romantic memories turned toxic, while ‘Blushing’ is an upbeat melody pleading with desire, and ‘He’s My Man’, is a tender love ballad that ends on a sinister twist. Moreover, ‘Vicious Delicious’ - the previously released title track - is beautifully dramatic, encapsulating the push-and-pull seduction with a man you’re fully aware is anything but good for you - yet you can’t resist the intrigue. But she’s not in love, as she sharply reminds us: “I don’t wanna be your baby / Wouldn’t even if you paid me”. She resists, fights back, and yet willingly returns for more for her own desire - not his. ‘Vicious Delicious’ also features a fiddle solo reminiscent of a James Bond soundtrack piece that would appear during the grand entrance scene of a deadly femme fatale. It is seductive, cinematic, and deliciously dangerous - a perfect embodiment of Luvcat’s temptress persona that she has meticulously created. 

Vulnerability is a central theme within the album. ‘Alien’ explores the surreal allure of being different; ‘Emma Dilemma’ sinks lower in tone as it tells the tragedy of a mind split in half; and ‘Lipstick’ embraces the pain of being seen as a plaything rather than an equal to the man she wants to be with. But one of the newest tracks, ‘Laurie’, portrays Luvcat at her most vulnerable. A slow-burning ballad that highlights Luvcat’s spellbinding falsetto, the song continues to embrace the album’s theme of death - specifically, imagined death. “I often wonder if you’d come to my funeral / if you’d be stood grief-stricken in a suit and tie.” It’s a lyric that resonates with uncomfortable familiarity; it captures the quiet ache of watching someone you care about move on while you’re still anchored to the past. There’s a yearning for closure in every note Luvcat sings, a painfully desperate need to know the extent to which her absence is truly impactful. “But do I really have to die to see you cry?” she asks, equal parts plea and provocation.

Luvcat’s world-building through music is nothing short of impressive, and it's easily evident through the soft operatic interlude ‘Kazimier Garden’ as well as the bold ballad ‘Dinner @ Brasserie Zedel’ which describes the restaurant’s romantic surroundings in between the rhetorics. But it’s not until the final track, ‘Bad Books,’ that the listener is transported to a 20th-century speakeasy where trumpets fill the air just as much as the smoke. Here, Luvcat leans into her indulgence and defiance, unbothered by the judgment: "I'm just a Victorian lost at the Playboy Mansion,” she repeats into a grainy microphone. Low repetitive piano chords and sparse drum beats accompany her purposely distorted voice, amplifying the song’s vintage glamour. The track perfectly portrays Luvcat’s timeless persona - an artist who is able to blend eras to build her own unique aesthetic.

As the red curtains are released to fall, the album leaves you satisfied yet anticipatory for the next chapter. It’s a fittingly cinematic finale to a body of work that thrives on relationships, self-awareness, and world-building. Overall, Vicious Delicious is a remarkable debut album, and it’ll be exciting to see what's next in Luvcat’s story.