Rahim Redcar: Hopecore review – former Christine and the Queens artist plays to his fanbase

(Because)There are flashes of brilliance in this roughly-hewn album, but also flaws hidden by production flourishes. It’s intriguing but not wholly enjoyableLike many people, Rahim Redcar, formerly known as Christine and the Queens, spent hours tweeting about the Olympics opening ceremony in Paris. As fans decried his lack of involvement in the endless water-based procession, the French art-pop practitioner hinted at having been in talks to partake but said he was “weakened and bored by their system” (he would later perform during the closing ceremony of the Paralympics). Seemingly emboldened by this realisation, he added: “I might act drastically in the upcoming few days.”In the end, fans didn’t need to wait that long. A few hours later, Redcar – a name he has been using since 2021 – posted a WeTransfer link to his social media platforms containing the seven tracks of his fifth album, Hopecore. Its rushed delivery spoke to Redcar’s recent personal and professional turbulence: the free-to-download record was listed as containing eight songs, but track five was missing; when asked where it was by fans on X, Redcar replied: “Track 5 is God.” That the album now arrives officially, more than six weeks later, under a new artist name – one he says he was “gifted while on a spiritual journey” – and with just seven songs, doesn’t help in terms of clarity. Continue reading...