Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 was released in June 2017.[4]Volume 2 marks Harris's first album in five years.[5][6] The album includes 23 collaborators.[7]
In March 2022, Harris seemingly confirmed on
Twitter that there would be a sequel to his 2017 studio album Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 by writing "Vol. 2 is gonna be mad".[8] On 20 April 2022, he officially announced that the album would be released in the summer via his social media accounts. The announcement featured a photo of a billboard with the album's title on it located near
Indio, California.[9][10][11] On 23 May 2022, Harris posted a teaser via his social media accounts with the caption "Friday".[12] The teaser contained a snippet of a new song along with an accompanying video that shows an island with purple-tinted water, palm trees, and a pink-hued sky.[13] On 30 June 2022, the release date for Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 was revealed as 5 August 2022,[14] alongside a video trailer revealing the artists making guest appearances on the album.[15][7]
Singles
The album's lead single, "
Potion", a collaboration with English singer
Dua Lipa and American rapper
Young Thug, was released on 27 May 2022. It was first teased by Harris on 24 May through the social media application
TikTok.[16] "Potion" is Lipa's second collaboration with Harris following "One Kiss", which was released in 2018.[17] A music video was released for the song which features Lipa in four vintage outfits.[18] The album's second single, "New Money", a collaboration with Atlanta-based rapper
21 Savage, was released on 1 July 2022.[19] The album's third single, "
Stay with Me", a collaboration with American singer-songwriters
Justin Timberlake,
Halsey, and
Pharrell Williams, was released on 15 July 2022.[20] It was teased by Harris on 6 July 2022.[21] A fourth single, "
New to You", with
Normani,
Tinashe and
Offset was released on 29 July 2022. Obsessed was released as the fifth single in UK Radio.[22] All singles were solely produced by Harris.
On review aggregator
Metacritic, Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 received a score of 60 based on 12 critics' reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[23] Hannah Mylrea of NME wrote that on the album, Harris "meshes a wistful grab-bag of influences –
nu-disco,
funk,
boogie,
soul – with his skill for creating a mega-watt
pop-hit, taking listeners on a journey on a psychedelic trip you won't want to end".[28]Maura Johnston of Rolling Stone opined that Harris is not "reinventing the
dance-pop wheel with Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2—the title alone shows that. But it's a fine wind-down album, one that can be put on shuffle at the end of a long-summer-night
bacchanal".[2]
James Hall of The Telegraph described the record as a "hazy collection of groove-driven vocal tracks" that "comes across as even more laid-back than its predecessor".[31] Reviewing the album for The Guardian, Alim Kheraj characterised the album as "slinky disco-pop" but felt that Harris's "luxurious production doesn't disguise the dullness of the songs".[1] Writing for Pitchfork, Owen Myers found when Harris "borrows from
disco,
electro-soul, boogie, and '80s
R&B, the music is so wispy and unobtrusive it has the staying power of vape smoke at
Coachella", elaborating that his "synths glide frictionlessly" and "vivid colors become pastel-toned playlist fodder".[29]
Track listing
All tracks produced solely by
Calvin Harris, except for "Ready or Not", produced alongside
Burns.