Process

Pitchfork 8.6/10 It’s a remarkable, meditative work, as he processes grief and navigates self-discovery.

A.V. Club A- Process is an exercise in finding beauty in even the tragedy of a parent’s death, a record of singular probity and hard-earned optimism. It’s the best R&B debut since FKA Twigs’ LP1.

The Needle Drop 8/10 Sampha's debut album was worth the wait.

The Line of Best Fit 9/10 Process is an album built to take your breath away. From start to finish, it’s a display of Sampha’s mastery as a lyricist, a singer and a musician.

NME 4/5 ‘Process’ might not be as bold or as inventive or as life-changing as some of the other records Sampha’s had a hand in during his career, but it does have a quiet, dignified impact that suits its maker. He hasn’t stepped out of his shadowy, background world; instead, he’s invited us to join him there.

Evening Standard 4/5 Sampha has channelled his talents into this remarkable debut.

Rolling Stone 4/5 He's hook man to pop's most advanced megastars – see Solange's "Don't Touch My Hair," Kanye West's "Saint Pablo," Frank Ocean's "Alabama," Drake's "Too Much" – but his debut LP proves him their peer.

DIY 4/5 A debut bursting with ideas, broad in scope, and vivid in its storytelling.

The Independent 4/5 Vulnerability is the current stock-in-trade of neo-soul, but rarely has it been indulged quite as imaginatively as on Sampha’s Process.

All Music 4.5/5 In a way, this all makes the previous output seem merely preliminary.

The Skinny 5/5 Process is an exercise in catharsis, a deep breath in that lays Sampha’s soul bare through gorgeous vignettes of his life. He worries, he regrets, he aches. He’s human.

Under The Radar 6.0/10 Expectations for Sampha's first full-length album proper have been sky high. Previous collaborative efforts have in fact been nigh-on flawless, so much so that it's hard to imagine one of modern soul music's most talented voices featuring on anything less than above average. It's unfortunate then that Process, bar some stand-out moments, proves to be somewhat underwhelming.

Clash 8/10 With ‘Process’, Sampha lays bare his soul through warm, tinted vignettes that are achingly humane.

Mojo 4/5 Sampha’s solo debut sits somewhere between the ghostly avant-soul of Frank Ocean and James Blake’s emotionally wrought electronica.

The Observer 4/5 If Sampha’s process sounds like one big downer, it isn’t. Every listen throws up some new, previously unnoticed innovation.

Loud and Quiet 8/10 Shorn of flab and clocking in at that magic ten-track, 40-minute mark, ‘Process’ is a triumph not only of feeling and melody, but also of patience and efficiency.

Pop Matters 8/10 Despite Sampha’s longstanding prevalence in the music world, the intensely personal nature of Process demands a renewed relationship to his work, one that appreciates the power of distance yet marvels at connection.

The Guardian 4/5 It’s a weighty, powerful album with an identity entirely of its own. And while clearly not constructed with commercial ambition at the forefront of its mind, it’s certainly good enough to make an unlikely star of the man behind it.

Spectrum Culture 70% Flawed though it is, Process is an astonishing debut that reveals things about the artist no one would have expected.

The Telegraph 4/5 There is so much going on, it proves a hard album to fully get to grips with, a shifting tableau of songs and sounds with only that mesmeric voice to hang on to. But when it gets under your skin, it proves immensely difficult to dislodge.

The Irish Times 4/5 His delicate wisp of a falsetto is a fantastic calling card and something which brings each song smartly together, yet he also has the ability to craft songs which are full of nuance and emotion.