Authority

Released in 2014, Authority marks a significant chapter in Client's history as the first and only full-length album featuring Nicole Thomas (Client N) on vocals. Following the departure of Sarah Blackwood (Client B) in 2010, band founder Kate Holmes spent several years retooling the project's identity. The resulting album, released via the German industrial/electronic label Out of Line, leans harder into the project's darker, more abrasive influences while retaining the pop sensibilities of their earlier work. Production-wise, the album favors a clean, digital sharpness over analog fuzz, emphasizing the 'corporate' and 'authoritarian' themes suggested by the title. It stands as a bridge between the indie-leaning synth-pop of the mid-2000s and a more mature, industrial-inflected electronic sound. Critical reception noted the successful integration of Thomas's voice, which maintained the band's tradition of deadpan delivery while adding a subtle Bristol-influenced soulfulness to the colder electronic arrangements.