Ider: Emotional Education review – glossy record brimming with radio-friendly songs

It's oft said that the friendships made in college have the potential to profoundly impact the course of one's life. It's fitting then that Megan Markwick and Lily Somerville felt a kinship whilst working together on a group project during their Falmouth University days. Shortly after, the London-based duo formed Ider.

Over the last six years, Markwick and Somerville have finely-tuned their exuberant electro-pop debut, Emotional Education. Central to the record is an anxious depiction of being young in 2019; “I’m in my twenties so I panic in every way,” the duo sing on You’ve Got Your Whole Life Ahead of You.

It’s an exercise in comprehending the complexities of relationships – romantic, familial and internal – that shape our world view. Consequently, Ider speaks assuredly to the streaming generation.

Tonally, all necessary contemporary pop motifs required to garner mass-appeal are gathered. Traces of Lorde are revealed in Mirror’s clap-drum chorus while Billie Eilish’s sinister textures are apparent on Wu Baby’s distorted vocal bridge. Elsewhere, the duo channel Sigrid on Swim, a tropical arrangement that would sit nicely on a Love Island-inspired playlist.

Overall, an extremely glossy record brimming with radio-friendly songs.