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New Albums by Niall Horan and Lizzo reviewed

Daily Star's music guru preps a cheese board for Niall Horan's laidback offering Dinner Party, and enjoys Lizzo saluting her haters after a tough couple of years

[Niall Horan]

Perfect background music for dinner parties from Horan(Image: Instagram)

Niall Horan sounds like hes hitting his stride having quietly carved out an arena sized following with his mellow solo tunes.

Latest LP, Dinner Party is supremely laidback, Taste So Good To Me introducing you to his sunny jangly aura, with a little more appreciation for guitar detail.

The loved-up title track is more light and fluffy, perhaps a little too background dinner party music, but perfect for cheese boards.

More appealing is the summery Monochromatic alongside unusually perky highlight, Boys Are Fun - a party tune which veers into Kool & The Gang territory before settling on a Gallic Phoenix vibe.

The ballads are very strong too, Better Man one of those acoustic purity moments Damien Rice style, while End Of An Era subtly pays homage to his late pal Liam Payne and a time "so fast that I couldn't tell you goodbye.

Its celebratory rather than too melancholic, destined to bring happy tears to the cheeks of 1D fans.

DAILY STAR Rating ***

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The backlash against Lizzo felt pretty extreme, but shes not bitter, sounding more serene on B*tch.

Take Toast, an old fashioned musical overture which strips down to just voice and a sweet salute for all the haters.

For the title track she interpolates Meredith Brooks classic song of the same name, transforming the word Bitch into a message of self-love. However, whats most refreshing is the tone of Lizzos voice, which focuses less on the raw power of old.

Instead she taps into its delicate nuances over vintage Detroit grooves like Happy 2 Be, and it also works wonders on defiant closer Good Morning where she hollers time to wake your ass up.

Along the way theres some fabulous throwbacks, none finer than Dont Make Me Love U which oozes early 90s Tina Turner attitude and the killer electro rap pop banger That Grrrl - a celebration of her body.

Yes shes been through the ringer but Lizzo won't be played a fool no more, offering no-good fellas a warning on big soul anthem, Whose Hair (is this in my bed) because it ain't from my head.

DAILY STAR Rating ****

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