Little Dragon - Slugs Of Love (LP) - Clear Orange/Black/Blue Splatter Vinyl

Little Dragon’s Slugs of Love arrived on 7 July 2023 via Ninja Tune, and it lands like a reminder of what this Gothenburg quartet does so well. Yukimi Nagano’s voice stays cool and intimate in the middle of a rhythm section that knows how to glide, while synths blink and purr around the edges. The band has leaned left-of-center pop since their 2007 debut, but this record feels playful in a way that recalls Machine Dreams and Ritual Union, without losing the richer textures they explored on Nabuma Rubberband and New Me, Same Us.

The title track sets the tone. “Slugs of Love” moves with a rubbery bassline and handclap groove that keeps slipping little surprises into the cracks. Nagano threads a melody that feels both featherlight and sly, the kind of hook that burrows in slowly. “Kenneth” takes that bouncy spirit and pushes it into a sunny, slightly off-kilter shuffle. You can hear Erik Bodin’s drums and Fredrik Wallin’s bass having an unspoken conversation, leaving space for Håkan Wirenstrand’s synth stabs to tease the harmony. It is deceptively simple, the way a Little Dragon song often is, until you notice how neatly each part locks into place.

Guests slide in without stealing the show. JID’s appearance on “Stay” is a sharp piece of casting. His nimble verse snaps the track into focus, then recedes so the band can stretch again. Damon Albarn, a longtime collaborative thread in their story since the Gorillaz days on Plastic Beach, turns up for a haunted cameo that matches their nocturnal palette. The features feel earned, not bolted on, which keeps the album’s mood intact from front to back.

There is a warmth to the production that feels very Little Dragon. The group recorded in their Gothenburg space, chasing tactile sounds rather than glossy sheen. You get tuned percussion poking through the mix, analog synths grumbling under the kick, tiny vocal doubles that flicker and vanish. Nothing is fussy. It is the sound of a band that trusts feel over fireworks. That approach pays off on the midtempo cuts that make up the record’s heart, where the push and pull in the rhythm section gives Nagano the room to play with phrasing, to float a line then snap it tight a bar later.

Context helps. Little Dragon have lived several lives, from cult favorites to festival fixtures, and they have the receipts to prove it, including a Grammy nomination for Nabuma Rubberband. Critics received Slugs of Love with a steady nod, and it is easy to hear why. The album rewards close listening, yet it also slides neatly into a late afternoon, windows open, coffee cooling on the table. It is less about big choruses than about mood, color, and the quiet dopamine hit of a perfect hi-hat pattern.

On vinyl, those details bloom. The bottom end feels rounder, and the synth textures have a little extra air above them, which makes this a fun spin next to earlier Little Dragon vinyl. If you are crate-digging and see Slugs of Love vinyl tucked between their older titles, grab it. Fans who like to buy Little Dragon records online should keep an eye on Ninja Tune’s shop and trusted indie retailers. If you prefer to browse in person, a good Melbourne record store will likely file it alongside Scandinavian electronic pop, and folks hunting vinyl records Australia wide should have decent luck with independent shops that stock imports. It also sits well if you are building a shelf of Little Dragon albums on vinyl, since it bridges the neon snap of their early records with the sultrier, R&B-soaked feel of their mid-period work.

Slugs of Love does not shout. It smiles, nudges, and invites you back. The band’s core of Nagano, Bodin, Wallin, and Wirenstrand still thrives on interplay and restraint, and the songs feel lived-in without ever going limp. It is a late-career record that trusts in small pleasures. Put it on and let those pleasures pile up.