Amy Shark has released her fourth studio album, Soft Pop, after taking herself away to a converted church studio in Barry, Wales, to break through a period of exhaustion and creative stagnation. The Australian singer says the tightly scheduled, isolated process helped restore her enthusiasm for songwriting, making the album a personal creative reset rather than simply a commercial project.

Her husband and manager, Shane Billings, set a firm deadline: a month for Shark to write material alone before recording with longtime producer Dann Hume. The 11-track album has no co-writers, guest features or drums, and includes the singles “The Biggest Dick”, “Our Last Fight”, “Child of Divorce” and “It’s Kinda Hot”; it follows three consecutive Australian No. 1 albums, including 2024’s Sunday Sadness.