On You’re Too Precious, James Blake returns with a delicately wispy, drifting experimental ballad. Set on top of a piano sample, vocal glitches, and erratic bass grooves, the single falls in line with the electronically textured work on Assume Form. The track seamlessly transitions through phases, with glitched “So, so now” and “You're too, you're too precious” vocal snippets dissipating into a finale of vocal clarity “I'll be a bubble. I'll make myself useful” his words fully elevated into the clouds. The bubbly encapsulation of love recalls Dirty Projector's Little Bubble, but as expected, with Blake’s trademark melancholy.
Densely woozy, encasing electronics have been a recent exploration of Blake’s, reminiscent of the nocturnal motifs on If the Car Beside You Moves Ahead. “I wrote this song at 5 a.m. and it brought me a lot of peace,” he remarked on his new track during an interview with Apple Music. However, unlike Lullaby For My Insomniac, You’re Too Precious plays as a lucid, dreamy escape, rather than a pensive rumination.
The excellent music video, directed by talented visual artist and musician Orfeo Tagiuri, perfectly mirrors the collaged sonic textures and elevating progression. Featuring etchings, video recordings, and floral drawings, forms transfigure into a bubbly man flying across a landscape, just as when his vocals appear distinctly in the track. The piece is a beautiful, glimmering flight and reflects Blake’s stunning abilities as a songwriter.
