King Princess - Cheap Queen (2019) [Deluxe Edition 2020] (Official Digital Download Re-Encoded)

The debut album from Brooklyn-bred singer/songwriter Mikaela Mullaney Straus, aka King Princess, 2019's Cheap Queen, is an intimate, slow-burn production, steeped in echo-chamber R&B and indie rock balladry. The daughter of a recording engineer, Straus grew up in her father's studio, playing instruments and writing songs from a young age. She famously turned down a record deal at 11 years old, holding out on launching her career until she had complete control of her identity and her sound. That control is palpable on Cheap Queen as Straus offers songs rife with her self-aware swagger and all-encompassing musical identity. Openly gay, Straus subtly deals with themes surrounding gender and sexuality, even as she commands the album with a low-key sensuality that combines masculine hip-hop confidence with a soulful, feminist point-of-view, something she previously explored on non-album singles "1950" and "Pussy Is God." Perhaps most indicative of this aspect is the title track, a half-lidded drag queen-inspired anthem about resourcefulness and resilience in the face of day-to-day struggles. She sings "I've been alright/I've just been doing the same shit I've always liked/Like smoking and movies and homies who bring me wine/I've been going out too much/Been talking 'bout myself too much/Oh, I can be good sometimes/I'm a cheap queen/I can be what you like and I can be bad sometimes/I'm a real queen." The song's chorus has a supple, hypnotic flow that brings to mind Prince, whose own spiritualized pop-androgyny colors much of Straus' work. There are other iconic influences at play elsewhere as Straus draws upon Vauxhall and I-era Morrissey on the breezy "Ain't Together." Similarly, the blue hues of her richly atmospheric "Homegirl" bring to mind the '60s-inspired work of Richard Hawley, while the groove-oriented "Hit the Back" (one of the few upbeat dance songs on the album) somehow cannily evokes both Lily Allen and Madonna without sounding exactly like either. Instrumentally, there are plenty of synths here, along with real and electronic beats, and an equal amount of analog and post-studio effects. Nonetheless, it never feels overly produced, allowing Straus' voice (a dusky, throaty coo she frames in falsetto asides and harmonized backing melodies) to grab the spotlight. Along with her pop hooks, what makes Straus' music so indelible on Cheap Queen is her strong sense of self. As King Princess, Straus is both the chilled-out R&B loverman and genderqueer lesbian songwriter, a tangible combination that's anything but cheap, and always real.