Adele returns with new ferocity on ‘30’ album

Six years after Adele’s last blockbuster exploration of heartache and loss, everyone’s favorite ugly-cry balladeer is back, channeling her vocal fireworks to lay bare the emotional torture -- and catharsis -- of divorce.

In line with her three other records the British artist’s highly anticipated new studio album ‘30,’ out Friday, digs into romantic pangs with the heart-piercing high notes set to stirring piano arrangements that have made her a household name.

The album’s first single ‘Easy On Me’ has reigned over the US and British singles charts since its debut four weeks ago, proving the enduring strength of Adele’s prowess as a hitmaker with broad appeal.

Her record drops after years without headlines and a stretch of musical silence, defying pop’s current standards of stream-friendly quick hits and an urgent social media presence.

But Adele’s announcement this fall that a new album would soon soundtrack break-ups and wistful contemplation the world round set off a media blitz, including Vogue and Rolling Stone cover stories along with a primetime Oprah Winfrey interview spliced into a televised concert that drew more than 10 million stateside viewers.

In the years since the 15-time Grammy winner’s last album ‘25’ -- which included the megahit ‘Hello’ -- Adele’s relationship of nearly a decade with Simon Konecki, including two years of marriage, dissolved.

While the 12-track ‘30’ does include textbook Adele -- those slow, mournful tales of feeling jilted and alone -- she isn’t hitting replay on her previous work.

The new album sees the now 33-year-old megastar marry her classic, piano-driven pop with new inflections of Motown and reggae, Afrobeat and dance music.

But its Adele’s honed writing delivered in her smoky, volcanic range that does the heavy lifting on ‘30.’

“They say to play hard, you work hard, find balance in the sacrifice,” she belts in “I Drink Wine,” a track that progresses from a 1970s-esque groove to a gospel choir-backed meditation on self-acceptance.

“And yet I don’t know anybody who’s truly satisfied.”

In ‘Love In The Dark’ she sings that “I want to live and not just survive.” The North Londoner who now lives in Los Angeles is rare in the music industry in terms of the sheer breadth of her fan base, which includes people who listen to terrestrial radio and purchase physical albums as hundreds of millions more stream her work. Along with the wave of positive critical reviews coming in, her new record is expected to be yet another resounding commercial success.