As you may guess by the title, if you’re looking for a balanced perspective on the superlative “Chime," you’re in the wrong place. Dessa’s new album is everything I wanted: tougher, sweeter, tighter, and more real, and considering that “Parts of Speech” already hit a near-perfect balance of tough talk and vulnerability, “Chime” surpassing it was hardly a given.

If you’re new to Dessa, “Chime” is an excellent entry point. Like in “Parts of Speech”, her lyrics are front and center, with production and delivery working together to ensure every word is heard and in its place. “Chime” has less wordplay (except on the sublime “Shrimp”) in favor of a more vivacious poetry that soars from image to metaphor, sometimes rambunctiously, sometimes softly.

Dessa, particularly in the context of Doomtree, is not afraid of politics, and yet despite the strange times, “Chime” takes a turn for the introspective after the explosive and biting “5 out of 6” and “Fire Drills." This is unexpected but not unwelcome, as “Fire Drills” is a bit of a mic drop anyway; there isn’t a whole lot more for Dessa to say after that. The rest of the album is much more reserved, even with the lighthearted “Shrimp” thrown in the middle like an opera buffa. Dessa tackles grief with clear-eyed maturity.

A central theme of “Chime” is time and loss; “Good Grief” tackles it most directly, but “Chime” is largely a portrait of a woman freshly bereaved and asking when her pain will turn to strength. Dessa on “Chime” is caught between wisdom and willfulness, no longer young and foolish but not quite old and wise either. The album ends with “I Hope I’m Wrong”, a touching and vital tribute that tackles the distance between Dessa’s intellectual commitment to atheism and the emotional connection to lost loved ones. It offers no answers, just poses the question in soft backlit relief. In a way it’s reminiscent of “Annabelle," the aching ballad of her last album, but “I Hope I’m Wrong” is more cerebral and less despairing.

Overall, “Chime” is a worthy followup to “Parts of Speech.” Dessa’s unique brand of blunt realism and immersive storytelling is in full force, and “Chime” promises to ring in my ears for months to come.