16 tracks · 47 min
On Access All Areas, FLO deliver a fierce, shapeshifting debut album of tracks that explore the hopes, fears and burning ambitions that come after a breakthrough which saw them tagged as the great hopes for British R&B. On 2022’s “Cardboard Box”, Jorja Douglas, Stella Quaresma and Renée Downer’s tidy chemistry and harmonic timing referenced greats of the sound from yesteryear, while providing a glimpse of the future. “We know better than anyone what a journey it has been to get here,” Quaresma tells Apple Music. “But this is actually only the beginning. Those years, filled with lessons, learning and even trauma…it’s all in the past as the AAA-era starts from today. This album signifies us letting our supporters in, sharing more of our lives and giving out more of us.” Access All Areas strikes at the sounds they’ve always dreamed of—guided by the razor-sharp writing, education and smooth production chops of exec producer MNEK. “He’s a really big part of helping us unlock different parts of our voices,” Quaresma says of the British multi-hyphenate. “We’re still so young with so much to learn, so we do lean on him for guidance.” And the results speak for themselves. FLO tangle with t…