Underscores – ‘U’ review: zeitgeisty hyperpop for an overstimulated, isolated generation

Underscores. Credit: Alexa Viscius for NME ReviewsAlbum Reviews Underscores – ‘U’ review: zeitgeisty hyperpop for an overstimulated, isolated generation A tour-de-force of production chops that cements April Harper Grey as a key auteur in the future of the genre 5 By Otis Robinson 20th March 2026 Following her 2023 dystopian concept record ‘Wallsocket’, hyperpop musician Underscores sought “brain off” music that wasn’t as “intentional” as the gloomy fictional town of her second album. But a packed schedule (supporting Porter Robinson and Danny Brown, playing Coachella, and appearing on NME‘s The Cover) didn’t afford much downtime. So lands April Harper Grey’s urgent self-produced third album ‘U’, music “for malls, airports, hotels, supermarkets” by a touring musician in constant transit. Though, it’s not clear if this frenetic, caffeine-infused boost to survive the modern capitalist overwhelm necessarily counts as brain off. READ MORE: Underscores: the hyperpop satirist refusing to regress Aiming for something less intentional than concept has led to reality: hyperactive, diaristic, tabloid-ish, beyond-the-fourth-wall bangers detailing Grey’s onset E-girl stardom. Amid fans now requesting autographs on their passports, on ‘U’ – both a pseudo-self-titled record and an infatuation with you, her audience – Underscores raves under a paranoid ascension. “Is this doing anything for you, baby?” she performs on ‘Tell Me (U Want It)’, anxious about a bad popstar dye job. Chasing accolades, she’s having “wet dream[s] ‘bout the perfect song[s]” (‘Music’), and on ‘Hollywood Forever’ she’s revelling in fame’s riches: “Is it bad that I kinda love being a bitch?” Advertisement But ‘U’ is as much about intimacy (or a lack thereof) as it is celebrity, finding Grey, now a commercial product, in search of connection. Take dreamy standout ‘Lovefield’, where Grey reaches through the screen: “Can we have a heart-to-heart? […] I don’t wanna be untouchable anymore.” But on the noughties Britney-ish track ‘Do It’, with its Justin Timberlake breakdown, she makes herself unavailable and unattainable: “Don’t you get it? People get my lyrics tattooed on their bodies,” she spits, possessed, “I’m tryna run a business here.” Later, in earnest, she confesses on ‘Bodyfeeling’ that she’s just not prepared to give it all up: “You know what’s required of anyone in this business.” In capturing celebrity transience and ensuing emotional seclusion, ‘U’ retains Underscores’ established documentarian approach to pop music: she’s both time capsule and mirror, a reflection of a globalised, overstimulated, reputation-conscious, isolated generation and its parasocial obsessions. ‘U’ is not as narratively juicy as ‘Wallsocket’ – an almost-mockumentary of Middle America brimming with Twin Peaks-level lore – but it retains Grey’s observational viewpoint, a dystopian-gaze with surreal liminality. Underscores is most effective at this skill, at removing from her music any context cues that could point to a time or place of release. She jitters between decades of concentrated hyperpop, dubstep, EDM, Imogen Heap-inspired harmoniser-pop and combination guitar-electronica lab experiments, a tour-de-force of production chops that reaffirms Grey’s established position as a key auteur in the future of her genre. More Black Mirror than Twin Peaks, ‘U’ is an intimate hyperpop record portraying snowballing isolation, a digital-age pop star’s yearning under the limelight of the techno-infused Anthropocene. Details Record label: Mom+Pop Release date: March 20, 2026 Related TopicsHyperpopPopUnderscores More Stories Music News Watch Lily Allen unveil original ‘West End Girl’ painting at London’s National Portrait Gallery Music News Pet Shop Boys adapting new ‘It’s A Sin’ “dance show” production with Russell T Davies Music News Miley Cyrus says headlining Super Bowl Halftime Show would be “too much pressure” Music News Olivia Rodrigo teases imminent return with cryptic pink clues in LA and London Music News Lorde embraces “clean slate” as 17 year Universal record deal comes to an end Music News Niall Horan announces new album ‘Dinner Party’ You May Also Like