FKA twigs, the popular English experimental visionary, released the original version of “EUSEXUA” in January of 2025 to majority lauded reception. Some more critical of the project missed the old twigs’ comparatively more left-field production on projects like “LP1” and “MAGDALENE” that was replaced by safer sonic moves. Still, it was an enjoyable album to most.
Come Nov. 14, the suspected deluxe version of “EUSEXUA” was released as a reissue of the original album with four songs replaced. What fans confused to be the deluxe was “EUSEXUA Afterglow,” which was actually a standalone companion album to the original “EUSEXUA.” Instead of the generally lighter sound of the previous album that felt adjacent to dance music, “Afterglow” embraced the bounciness in its own authentic way, making for a fun listening experience.
“Love Crimes” starts off “Afterglow” strong with a heavy synth and a booming kick drum. The lyrics speak to prioritizing yourself instead of the other person in the relationship with lyrics like “Hard times call for love crimes / You might be the one, but now I’m done.” The verse confounds this story with the lyrics about feeling sexual satisfaction with this person. A poetic and clever lyric is “Your body’s a death trap, precious like a teardrop,” which could be a reference to the “petit mort,” or “little death” achieved after climaxing in sex. Regardless, letting go was more important for twigs.
The pseudo-Jersey club “Wild and Alone” features a guest verse from drum and bass artist PinkPantheress and explores a relationship with a famous person. The most telling lyric about this relationship is the lyric sung by the two vocalists, “If you gave it up, it all / I’d love you if you were nobody.”
“HARD” is a song about establishing boundaries with a potential lover about having rough sex that features some really catchy, bouncy and danceable electronic production. Between the synths, percussion and bass, the sound of this song is incredible.
The way “Cheap Hotel” plays with tempo in an almost trip-hop way similar to Massive Attack is super engaging in a different way than the songs prior. Having a breather from all the fast and comparatively heavier tracks that precede this song serves well for the flow of the album.
“Touch A Girl” symbolizes a shift in the lyrical contents of the album. The song, which is set to atmospheric synths and a heavy, booming bass to counteract it, talks about how twigs is left disappointed by how her lover doesn’t know how, she claims, to sexually please a girl. The lyrics, “Ask a question, and maybe you’ll know / How to really touch a girl / Got so low on dopamine / Told you that you’re hurting me,” speak to this inability to consider the other party in a relationship.
“Predictable Girl” has an incredibly heavy bassline with house-inspired percussion. The lyrics tackle themes of not knowing personal identity between both twigs and her lover and how it ties into sexuality.
“Sushi,” the longest song on “Afterglow,” is a proclamation of doing more than just sex with your lover; instead, they also explore the city and spend time together as two adults. The production here has some of the most boring production comparatively until the second half, but regardless the song doesn’t need to be this long.
The synth on “Piece of Mine” is absolutely beautiful and pairs well with the ballad-like vocals from twigs. Paired with the heavier percussion, it makes for a great song with a fun sonic texture.
“Lost All My Friends” focuses on declining mental health after partying and possibly taking drugs with lyrics like “Lost all my friends in the club / Then I lost my mind in the car / I don’t even remember who you are” over a distorted synth and UK drill-adjacent percussion in a different way than her song “darjeeling.”
With the previous song as a harbinger, “Stereo Boy” ends the album off on a somber note. The lyrics speak to wanting more out of a relationship, but the lack of support from the Stereo Boy leads to twigs developing even more mental distress after needing attention from him over a production with glitchy production. If this album were a continuous loop, “Love Crimes” would make sense as the song that comes after this one.
“EUSEXUA Afterglow” speaks to the malaise of decadence in terms of having lust control your romance and losing yourself to the relationships you have along with your own mind: something many can relate to. Production-wise, it feels the most realized in terms of twigs’ output after “MAGDALENE,” and thus offers a more engaging and fun listening experience than the already good “EUSEXUA.” You could experience twigs’ neologism of eusexua, meaning something like love obscuring the passage of time, to this production.
Rating: 4.25/5