We must face a “global plague”, Genesis Owusu warns us. And the only way to do it is to look a frightening reality in the face and fight against it, bringing into play nothing less than our bodies which dance to the point of exhaustion. Animated by this urgency, the third work of the Australian artist of Ghanaian origins adopts an even more radically politicized posture than in previous albums. A red star, reminiscent of the flag of his native country, perhaps winking at a guerrilla war about to be triggered or perhaps already begun, appears on the cover and in all the video clips that accompany the singles taken from the album.
With multiple national awards in Australia and already acclaimed by the world press, Owusu does not give in to the sirens who would recommend a softening on the radio. Indeed, it makes his approach even more compact and incisive dance punk al neo-soul. So, to leave no room for doubt, the setlist opens with the declaration of intent of “Pirate Radio”, an assault of synthetic bass worthy of Death Grips. The listener knows what to expect from here on: a clandestine flow of subversive messages, aimed at awakening consciences. Because the global plague does not exert its deadly violence only through drones and roundups, but also by instilling a subtle anguish that generates paralysis, loneliness and resignation. From which it is imperative to shake off. So here is the breakneck race of “Stampede”, the soundtrack to an adrenaline-filled video filmed in Ghana, where Genesis Owusu's parents returned to live, giving him the opportunity to reconnect with his roots.
In general, “Redstar Wu And The Worldwide Scourge” runs beautifully just when it pushes on the accelerator to give life to bombs synth-punk which is difficult to resist, in which even echoes of the very first Ultravox emerge: this is the case of the electronic boogie of “Life Keeps Going”, of the excellent single with Brit-rock reminiscences “Death Cult Zombie”, but also of the neurosis TV on the Radio that electrifies “Most Normal American Voter”. This ability to channel into dance unleashes extremely explicit invectives, whether it be calling for taxing the oligarchs, or ridiculing the conservative frustration of incel pro-Trump, or to denounce the passivity of world powers in the face of the genocide in Gaza, is what provides the album with its balance, even in the quasi-title track with its apocalyptic j'accuse on a liturgical trip-hop background. And the songs in which the danceable impetus is combined with a rapid-fire singability are as vital as they are refreshing – see the anthem between new wave and power pop “Runnin Outta Time” and the Balearic keyboards that give “Big Dog” its dreamy synth-pop.
The points in which the pulse slows down, although constituting a minority share, are distributed in various key moments. Although not all of them appear totally successful, they are nevertheless suggestive, among potential outtakes from “Blue Lines” (“Blessed Are The Meek”) and nostalgic synthwave suspensions (“4Life”, the only track without a rhythm section). Even better are the viscous funk of “Hellstar”, complete with the collaboration of the rapper Duckwrth, and the psychedelic arpeggios that punctuate “Situations”. And if “Falling Both Ways”, sung in tandem with Ladyhawke, with its nocturnal gait as if it came from a sedated The Weeknd, is placed among the peaks of the album for this writer, the bittersweet number wing Frank Ocean of “One4All” represents the perfect closure. The party ends, the view around us is desolate, but we can't help but face it: it's not time to go to bed, in fact it's precisely the time to stay alert and face the climb, climbing it with “Sisyphean shoulders”. Knowing that if we were to hesitate and feel lacking in strength, in the throes of discouragement, we can always put “Redstar Wu And The Worldwide Scourge” back on the plate and drink in the indomitable enthusiasm that Genesis Owusu was able to enclose in it.
05/07/2026
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
