Written by: Alex Green

The last in what I call “The Twilight Triptych,” The Music Lovers’ third album Masculine, Feminine has all the dusky romanticism of their debut (The Words We Say Before We Sleep) and the pop immediacy of their sophomore effort, (The Music Lovers’ Guide For Young People).

Astonishing for both its pop marksmanship and its lyrical sophistication, Masculine, Feminine may very well be singer Matthew Edwards’ best work yet. Whether it’s the slinky opener “Blackout,” the libidinous burn of “Bobbi Gentry” or the sheer longing of “Girl From Space,” this is an album that is positively brimming with melodic class. Rounding out the twelve-song collection, there’s pure pop punch (“Fashion Editor”), orchestral balladeering (“The Weekender”) and the impossibly catchy “Saturday,” all of which make this one of the most dazzling releases in recent memory.

Edwards remains one of the last of the great sophisticated songwriters, a true gentleman of song and a class act of a performer who values subject matter as much as melody. Whether he’s writing about former beauty queens or lusty sailors, he can wrap hooks around their tales with the kind of musical finesse and pop acumen that can stand beside the work of legends.

“The Twilight Triptych” may not have landed Edwards a front row seat at the Grammy Awards or a palatial Malibu estate, but his is a body of work that should keep pace with however long forever is, because this is the music that lasts.