Album- James Arthur
Artist- James Arthur
Male winners of the UK X Factor have always had a rough ride
when it comes to making it in the music industry, and it is fair to say that
whilst many nicely rode the initial wave of success that the show gave them,
aside from the odd one or two, no one has had a career of longevity that has
seen them go on to international success and have big selling career, with
awesome music behind them. That could all change with James Arthur, winner of
the 2012 series of the UK X Factor who went from almost being booted off the
show in the bottom two to becoming the eventual winner and creating an awesome
winner’s single that has not only had amazing sales in the UK of over 1.2
million, but which has also gone on to have surprising chart success in a
number of international territories. The singer’s self-titled debut is a highly
anticipated affair in which we really get to see the artist at work, but has
Arthur managed to capitalise on his success and give us music that is both
truly credible and chart worthy, or will he just be another male X Factor
winner who flies off into relative obscurity?
Track 1- You’re
Nobody til’ Somebody Loves You
The records lead single finds Arthur teaming up with rising
music producers TMS for a bluesy, soulful, big musical number that starts the
record off on a really upbeat note. The song focuses on the singer focusing on
the fact that apparently until you feel love you don’t know who you are, with
the chorus being an instantly accessible piece that will appeal to a wide
variety of audiences. Vocally Arthur is really great, giving us a performance
that warbles in all the right places and finds the singer nicely going through
the whole range of his voice to make the song feel really dynamic. The blend of
sounds in the production is great with some toe tapping drum beats and
bombastic horns that give the track this groovy feel, whilst the use of a choir
brings an extra level of pizazz to the track.
3.5/5
Track 2- Get Down
Another tune that is a bit more emotionally potent but which
has an uplifting feel, Get Down finds the singer focusing on rising up and not
letting elements of life get him down, with the intensity of the verses nicely
offsetting the uplifting, accessible chorus that is elevated by the co-writing
presence of pop songwriter Wayne Hector. The vocal performance is strong in the
way the singer flips into a higher vocal level in the chorus to bring the songs
sentiment out beautifully, whilst the presence of a choir in the song brings an
awesome gospel feel to the song that makes the final minute of the song really
impactful, whilst vocally Arthur and the choir blend really well. The song
features a lovely arrangement of strings with a heavy clattering drumbeats and
rumbling rhythm that really captures the lyrical tone very nicely.
3.5/5
Track 3- New Tattoo
Arthur is a lover tattoo’s (you just have to look at his
arms) and this song stems from that, but that doesn’t mean we get an
egotistical song where Arthur talks about his great tattoes. Instead we are
given a bold concept about how a new tattoo can make you feel confident in
different ways, with the song also having a romantic tinge in Arthur reflecting
that this person in his life is someone he can wear like a new tattoo and feel
better because of it. The song has bit more of a smouldering feel than the last
two tracks and finds the singer’s vocals really take centre stage as the simple
drumbeat and quirky guitar notes creates this chilled, mid tempo sound. The
vocals are strong and have this simmering passion that brings out the songs
sentiment nicely, but the only thing for me with this track is that I wish
Arthur would tone it back just a little just so we can really hear the softness
and gritty texture of his voice.
3.5/5
Track 4- Impossible
Often a winner’s single just becomes a kind of bonus track
tagged onto the end of the respective winner’s debut album, but here Arthur
nicely goes against the norm and puts his winners single amidst the sea of new
material he has created. This is probably because out of all the winner’s
singles, Impossible definitely feels like a cool blueprint of the kind of
artist that Arthur would be, whilst he definitely makes the song his own more
so than any other winner before him. The song was initially a hit for American
singer songwriter Shontelle, who gave us an RnB flecked pop ballad about the
end of a relationship. But here Arthur gives us a more emotive track that is as
much about him overcoming the odds and becoming an X Factor winner as it is a
cautionary tale of love. Arthur gives a commanding vocal performances drenched
with an emotional intensity that can really capture the listener, whilst the
smashing mix of light acoustic guitar with storming drum rhythms and potent
strings makes for a sound that captures the emotional feeling and makes the
singer more in tune with the artist.
3.5/5
Track 5- Lie Down
Lie Down is a funky soul flecked number with an old school,
kind of 90’s music vibe. The song finds Arthur telling this girl that he
doesn’t want to do anything wrong with this girl and just wants to take the
girl home and let her lie down with him. The song has this slight sexual edge
if you want it too, but more potently it is a song about Arthur wanting to
protect this girl and show that he doesn’t want to hurt her. The message is cool
and almost sweet but isn’t quite as lyrically strong as the other tracks,
although vocally Arthur is cool as gives us a smooth performance that utilises
his higher range in places to bring the emotion out a touch more. The funky
guitar rhythms of the track and the quirky beats are fun to begin with, but
after a while the sound does kind of mellow out in it’s ability to keep the
listeners attention.
3/5
Track 6- Recovery
Second single Recovery is one of the more emotionally
wrought pieces of the record that finds Arthur lyrically teaming up with singer
songwriter Ina Wroldsen, who co-wrote the singers winners single, and he also
once again teams up with production team TMS. The song lyrically tackles the
struggles Arthur experienced after winning the X Factor and being thrust into
this state of being famous, with the chorus being an really intense moment that
captures you in it’s lyrical honesty. The vocal performance is great in that
you really get the sense of Arthur putting his heart into the track and giving
us another level of honesty, with the vocals being strengthened by the contrast
of the soft verses and the big chorus. Production wise the track gives us a
slightly volatile sound that melds a piano melody with gritty drum beats and an
aggressive breakdown in the bridge that will make this a strong single.
3.5/5
Track 7- Roses
(featuring Emeli Sande)
Roses finds Arthur teaming up with producer Naughty Boy and
singer songwriter Emeli Sande for a dark, metaphorical love song. The song
focuses on Arthur and Sande singing about this bittersweet love where the
relationship is both awesome and volatile. The message is potent and Sande’s
soft vocal works well in the song, but the artists don’t quite blend well
enough, whilst Arthur’s vocals go to hard and make the emotion seem forced. The
production value on the track is simple with a nice string arrangement that
allows the lyrics to shine, but against the rest of the album it feels slightly
awkward, and Roses is really just a track that should have been kept for Emeli
Sande’s next record.
2/5
Track 8- Supposed
Described by Arthur as his favourite track on the record,
Supposed is a heartbreak drenched number that has this cool contrast of
darkness and apology in the lyrics and a light but still apologetic sound. Here
Arthur sings of his regret and realisation that he should have said things at
the time he was in the relationship, but he didn’t and that was wrong. The
lyrics are quite simple and powerful whilst the vocals are nice in the way that
the passion seeps through, with the middle 8 having this haunted, fragmented
feel through the nice layering of the singers vocals. Naughty Boy does a better
job with the production of this song, blending this stomping drum rhythm with
some twinkling melodies and giving us a darkly euphoric quality to the track.
3.5/5
Track 9- Suicide
With a title like Suicide you can easily judge this song as
being a depressing track you might not want to listen to. Rather than being about suicide, the song is
more about the idea of people asking you why this relationship has ended and
just coming to that conclusion that you and this person just simply killed each
other and killed the relationship. The concept is cool but at this stage in the
record the gravelly tones of the singer’s voice and the way that he goes for
the high notes in his songs can wear a bit thin, whilst the soulful energy of
the track with that swaying feel and clunky electric guitar makes for a sound
that is just boring.
2/5
Track 10- Is This
Love?
Whilst it may be a bit clichéd in its sentiment, Is This
Love? is a lyrically strong piece that aims to find understanding in what is
love and reminding people of what that means. The song is one of the more
accessible pieces of the record that would probably work well as a single, with
a simple chorus being backed by more lyrically intriguing verses. The song
features some forceful production with crashing drums and tick tock kind of
beat that makes the track feel the most pop orientated track on the record but
still feeling like an extension of Arthur’s artistry. The intense questioning
tone fo the song means that the belting vocal performance that Arthur gives
isn’t as annoying as some of the previous tracks can make you feel.
3.5/5
Track 11- Certain Things
(featuring Chasing Grace)
Another collaboration with Naughty Boy, Certain Things is a
pure love ballad that finds the singer in an emotionally simplistic and raw
state. The song is lyrically pure and finds the guy and girl in a relationship
simply telling each other that they love each and are certain that they are
meant to be. Out of the two duets on the record this is definitely the
superior, fitting in more with the singers vibe and also allowing him to show a
more understated side to his vocal that is built on warmth, whilst Chasing
Grace is a lovely, smooth partnership to his vocal that elevates the
storytelling, love based purity of the track. The song has this haunting sound
built on a lovely string arrangement, a simple piano melody and rumbling beats
that just gives this gorgeous delicacy to the track that makes it that much
more powerful of a listen.
3.5/5
Track 12- Smoke
Clouds
Smoke Clouds is a more acoustically driven track where the
singer seems to battle his demons and just express that idea that he is simply
trying to find his place in the world. The song is another simple and effective
affair that once again is vocally stronger because the singer doesn’t try to go
overboard and shows some nice control, whilst the simple piano and guitar tones
of the production just creates a breezy sound where the listener really gets a
sense of who Arthur is as an artist.
3.5/5
Track 13- Flyin
Final track Flyin is a short and snappy outro to the album
that finds the singer giving us a rap rather than singing and shows a different
musical side to himself that acts as this final moment of this could be the
lane that I follow for the next album. The song finds the singer simply venting
his emotions and rapping about the people who doubted him and the fact that he
is now flying cause he can make great music and do what he wants to do. Arthur
sounds like a skilled rapper and pure intent of the track makes it a cool
outro, with a simple beat backing the angst of the track very nicely.
3.5/5
Final Review
James Arthur self-titled debut album is definitely one of
the stronger musical offerings in regards to the male winners of the show, but
that doesn’t mean that it is an amazing album. Arthur’s voice is nicely
distinctive and the passion that he puts into his music is really great for the
listener. The lyrics are sharp but accessible, and the production nicely blends
soulful roots with pop and RnB and creates this intense sound that feels like a
good extension of who Arthur is simply as a human being. However, often the
production is too overpowering and frenzied, whilst the vocals are also
sometimes overdone with this sense of Arthur trying too hard to show how
powerful his vocals can go, and this lack of great control leaves us with a
cluttered collection of songs. But if the problems are worked on and things are
perhaps stripped back for some more songs then his next album could be a really
great affair, and this record will definitely see him have a successful career
and lead on to create a stronger second record.
6/10
Best Track- Certain Things
(featuring Chasing Grace)
Worst Track- Roses (featuring
Emeli Sande)
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