Friday, 24 January 2014

Tom Odell- Long Way Down Album Review


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Album- Long Way Down
Artist- Tom Odell

The Brit Critics Choice Award seems to be one of those awards that truly does show the critics can get some things right, as the past winners of the award such as Adele, Jessie J and Emeli Sande have all gone on to have amazing careers and worldwide success. As the first male winner of the Critics’ Choice Award, Tom Odell has a lot to live up to in terms of past winners, but also seems to be destined for success just through winning the award. But does Odell’s album live up to the hype that surrounds him?

Track 1- Grow Old with Me

First track Grow Old with Me is a sweet indie pop piano ballad that opens up the album in this cinematic way through the piano led intro that lasts for 30 seconds. Lyrically the track focuses on Odell telling this person of his love through how he knows life will be fine over time and they will always be the same at heart as they grow old together. The song is lyrically quite pure and has this powerful message that could appeal to different audiences, although the lyric 2 minutes 13 seconds in feels very unnecessary and a bit weird. The track features the singer giving us a slightly gritty vocal performance that becomes more powerful and vibrant as the song goes on. And the track features a bouncy piano melody that builds in energy through the introduction of a guitar and then a heavy drum bass that just gives the song this rush of energy. But whilst the song builds in power and energy, the lyrical content starts to feel less passionate and sweet, and so this track somehow just ends up going a bit wrong as it goes on.

3/5

Track 2- Hold Me

Hold Me is the second single from the record and finds the singer giving us more of a rowdy and soaring tune. Lyrically Odell comes across like he is drunk on love, focusing particularly on the fact that when this girl holds him it means everything is great. The message is cool but a bit poorly executed in terms of the lyrical repetition, and although the singer imbues passion into the track with his vocals, the vocal quality also feels a little bit poor because at times it doesn’t have the right texture and feels like a man just yelling. The clattering drums, guitar and the pounding piano riffs create a powerful sound that is satisfying, but overall there is something missing from this track, and it doesn’t feel like a single worthy of someone who got a Brit Award.

2.5/5

Track 3- Another Love

Initially appearing on the singers Songs From Another Love E.P and the first single from the album to reach the UK top ten, Another Love is an indie pop ballad that finds Odell on better form lyrically and vocally. The lyrical content of the track has a slight poetic quality that is nice as Odell puts on the role of this man who wants to love another woman, but who cannot love right because of romantic things with a former lover. The song has this brutal honesty that is cool and is given power by the emotional vocal performance that Odell provides, with the slight roughness of his voice giving the song a great intensity, whilst the way the track builds also nicely allows for the singers vocals to build. Production wise the song nicely employs piano and drums for this grand sound that makes for a grand ballad, with the gospel like vocal moments adding this extra emotional level to the song. Things would have perhaps worked better in my opinion if it was a bit more stripped back, but as it is, it is a good solid ballad.

3.5/5

Track 4- I Know

Following a similar vein as Another Love, I Know finds Odell in a hung up on a girl state, as he sings about how he knows the girl has told him to go away, but he seemingly can’t get her out of his mind. The repetition of I Know is good and makes the chorus catchy, but at times the lyrics do feel a bit clichéd. The singer’s vocals are strong and also nicely show off some of his range, but again the production is a bit too forceful and doesn’t build in sound in the right way, or at least not until the final chorus, and so it would seem that even at this slightly early stage Odell’s downfall would be that he packs too much into his songs.

3/5

Track 5- Sense

Another delicate piano led number, Sense finds Odell in this fragile state of mind as he poetically questions whether his world will make sense if he loves and lives in a certain way. The song has this touching delicacy that is brought out nicely by the conflicting passion that lies within the almost narrative like lyrics. The songs piano instrumentation keeps the track in this simple sound that is nicely elevated later on by the use of gospel like background vocals, whilst this sombre, stripped back tone really allows the singers emotionally loaded vocals to shine, giving us a powerful and well-crafted, delicate piece of music that is like art.

4/5

Track 6- Can’t Pretend

Can’t Pretend keeps the fragility of the previous track ticking along nicely as the singer tells us of how he can’t pretend to be in love and be something that he is not. The message is powerful, even though it is perhaps not as well-crafted because of repetition and a lack of lyrical substance in certain sections. The track has this two tone quality as initially the song is this simple piano led ballad that features a simple, deep vocal, before the track builds into this raucous number with heavy drumbeats and punchy guitar and piano rhythms, as well as this big, booming vocal that is elevated by the use of choir like background vocals. These fragile moments seem to work best for the singer, but this is also another tune where you get the sense of Odell trying to pack so much into his music that he just doesn’t quite get things right.

3.5/5

Track 7- Till I Lost

 

With Till I Lost Odell changes things up a little bit in giving us a slight preppy feel to the song with the snappy drum beats of the production. Here we find the singer detailing this life of just wandering around the town with this person and realising that he didn’t realise what he had till he lost it. The song is lyrically clichéd with an annoying ‘ooooh’ hook for the chorus that just feels like the singer couldn’t think of anything better to say. The clattering tone of the production creates a bit more of a vibrant quality that is a welcome change, yet the sound is still very familiar and safe, whilst the Odell’s vocals are passionate enough but once again just go into I am yelling territory.

2/5

Track 8- Supposed to Be

Supposed to Be is a soft mid tempo number that has slightly more of a soulful pop quality with the backbeat and the snazzy rhythm of the production has a whole. The song finds Odell singing of these good times he had with this person and how it was always meant to be that way. The song is more lyrically sophisticated, with Odell tapping into his heartbreak well, whilst his vocal is more subdued and controlled to bring out the songs vulnerability very beautifully. With production having more of a jazzy tone you can be more invested in the song, and it is a shame that he only produces this kind of track late in the album.

3.5/5

Track 9- Long Way Down

Title track Long Way Down is a weepy piano number that focuses on the singer creating this image of a girl up on high, and how if she falls then it will feel like a long way down. The song is lyrically intriguing as Odell could be just metaphorically referring to not letting a relationship end, or he could be asking someone not to leave him with regards to suicide. This intriguing quality of the track keeps you interested throughout, and vocally Odell uses his voice well in creating a chilled flow to the track that sees his voice rise and fall in a lovely way. The softness of the piano line allows the lyrics and vocals to have more of an impact and make you understand the artist a little more, and whilst it is actually quite a short song, Odell manages to make it feel like we are being taken on this personal journey that doesn’t feel unfinished.

3.5/5

Track 10- Sirens

Finishing off the album is Sirens, a song that utilises a good mix of a delicate piano melody with clashing drum beats and a nice acoustic guitar riff, creating this atmospheric tone that is in one way sad, but strangely uplifting in another way. The song focuses on Odell telling us that he keeps hearing sirens, and he will just run away from them. The song has that dual quality of being relationship based or more of critique of society, and so this is a nice way to end the record in terms of keeping you interested and sort of asking you to think about what he really means. Odell is vocally strong as he builds up his voice really well, with the layered style of the vocal definitely adding an extra kick to the final chorus.

3.5/5

Final Review

For a debut album, Long Way Down isn’t a terrible offering. But from a Brit Critics Choice Award winner, it is not the album that you want. Whilst his voice is interesting and distinctive, Odell often comes across as yelling rather than singing, and the album shows that in certain ways he still needs to improve on his vocal delivery. Whilst some of the songs are lyrically intriguing, other songs use bad clichés or are invested in poor pop hooks that show off the lyrical sparseness of some tracks. Furthermore, whilst the production is interesting, the blend of guitar, drums and piano is so familiar by the end that it seems as if Odell cannot make any other type of music. It is a promising debut, but for me Long Way Down is not a record that shows off this musician to his best, and makes me question what the critics were thinking in giving him the award.

4.5/10

Best Track- Sense

Worst Track- Till I Lost

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