Leona Lewis - Glassheart

I was all ready to attack this album, really not being a Leona Lewis fan myself - Bleeding Love is one of my least favourite songs of the last few years. However, I was pleasantly surprised by her latest album. I didn't like it QUITE as much as Mumford & Sons' album, but it was still much better than I thought. 

These days, it’s rare that someone can actually develop a long-lasting successful career from winning the X Factor – think Steve Brookstein  and Matt Cardle. Luckily for London-born Leona Lewis, she seems to have overcome this ‘X Factor Curse’ and has managed to create a outstanding music career for herself. Since winning in 2006, she has gone on to win an Ivor Novello, two MOBOs, an MTV Video Music Award, three World Music Awards to name but a few. The list really is endless, especially if you add in all the award nominations she also received. With her ever-powerful voice continuing to grow, Leona Lewis is going from strength to strength.

Leona seems to take a new turn for this album, evident from opening track Trouble, a completely different sound to previous hits. Faster paced and a more complex and dark beat, clearly Leona’s sound has progressed for the better, while still showing off her mezzo-soprano voice brilliantly. The lyrics seem to be personal too, as she sings “I’m a whole lot of trouble/We’re in a whole lot of trouble”. This album opener sets the theme for the majority of the album, with Come Alive and Shake You Up, a particularly old-school pop nugget, following suit and showing a more upbeat, dance-y and perhaps darker side to Leona’s music. It’s refreshing to see this new direction, as not only are they good tracks, but it shows how much variety she is capable of. Glassheart brings perhaps the biggest shock of the album, as it unlike anything we’ve ever heard from the usually down-tempo singer, with elements of dubstep as well as dance, a hook of “and I love you with my glassheart,” and an infectious beat that draws you in.

Of course the album incorporates the classic Leona Lewis songs we’ve come to know and love. From Stop the Clocks to Un Love Me to the beautiful and serene album closer Fingerprint, these tracks are the ones that really showcase how good her voice really is. Fireflies is a particularly highlight, as it’s completely calming and one of those ‘feel-good’ tracks that can always put a smile on your face. From the piano opening, to the addictive “Fire/It’s only fire” through what sounds like an amazing gospel choir, this track fits the album like a glove.

Leona Lewis has outdone herself with this new offering, challenging herself to try new styles and succeeding. Perhaps not an outstanding album of 2012, but a triumph for Lewis none the less. Most definitely worth a listen, at least.

3/5

Everything Everything - Cough Cough

I've always been a bit on/off about Everything Everything, although I've definitely been a fan for the most part. I had to listen to this new offering a couple of times, but now I constantly have it on repeat. I can almost guarantee it will be stuck in your head for days to come.

Nominated for two Ivor Novello awards and shortlisted for Barclaycard Mercury Music Prize, Everything Everything have made a name for themselves in the music world. Not wanting to follow any specific genre, and with one of the most eclectic influences lists ever seen, ranging from Nirvana to R. Kelly, the band simply make the music they want to make.
Cough Cough follows a string of successful hits, including MY KZ,UR BF and Photoshop Handsome. Characterised by an infectious drumbeat and fast vocals, cough cough is the recipe for the perfect fun indie hit. The track keeps you on your toes, switching between fast-paced and the slightly more chilled sections,  giving you a breather from all the dancing that you’ll no doubt be doing. As well as all this, the main hook of “I’m coming alive/I’m happening now,” is sure to turn into a chant at their live shows, which won’t be a bad thing.

Get ready to have this on repeat all day and all night. You have been warned.


4/5

Mumford & Sons - Babel

First review for Spark* this year was Mumford & Sons new album, 'Babel.' Although it sounds a lot like the last album, you can hear how they have progressed their sound and I really liked it. The album's out now if you wish to buy it.

There will always be the myth of the ‘difficult second album’ for any band, regardless of any first album success.  Mumford & Sons can’t escape this, needing a show-stopping second album to follow a debut album that went 4 times Platinum in the UK and achieved the Brit Award for Best British Album in 2011.  No pressure then.

From the opening notes of Babel, the powerful and bold opening track as well as the album title, it’s pleasing to hear they haven’t lost their folk charm.  That’s not to say their music hasn’t progressed, as their time in Tennessee seems to have influenced them and given a different edge to their well-recognised folk style.  I Will Wait, the first single to come from Babel, has already proved to be a hit, with the infectious “I will wait, I will wait for you” hook that begs to be sung by the festival crowds.  Broken Crown echoes the theatrical and dark point in Sigh No More, giving Babel the variety it needs to match the success of their debut.

But it’s not all fast, live-inspired tracks.  There are moments where the album slows right down, and an offering of peace is given.  Ghosts That We Knew is a chance to sit back and reflect for five minutes, and admire how good Mumford & Sons really are as both musicians and songwriters, as Marcus Mumford pleas “just promise me we’ll be alright.”  Babel hits an even better note, when these slower tracks are combined with the energy of I Will Wait to create something like Lover’s Eyes, that builds to a triumphant and riling climax.  

More ambitious and transatlantic writing and recording sessions, as well as the introduction of the 10 song game during recording, where each band member has to write 10 songs in a certain time period, has led to Babel.  The result is a bigger album, with more instruments and a slightly less polished sound.  Although Babel doesn’t offer anything particularly new or outrageously different than we’d expect, there’s no denying the band have progressed, and that this is a great album, from the opening energy Babel down to the closing calmness of Not With Haste.

4/5

Back to Uni, Back to blogging...

I'm now in my third week of my FINAL YEAR of University. I can safely say I am already bricking it. Trying to find my way through work, dissertation, writing for Spark*, finding a part-time job and finding an actual real life proper job for after I graduate is pretty overwhelming to say the least. Still, what else did I expect from this year?! Anyway, after a very long summer break from blogging duties, I am returning.

Over the summer, I visited Japan for a couple of weeks, and I'm currently, very slowly.... uploading photos here if you're interested:
Japan 2012 Photoset

I also went to London for a week's work experience with Top of the Pops magazine, which actually turned into two weeks (bar the last Friday, when I wasn't needed) when they asked me to come back. I really enjoyed my time there, and if I get a chance at Christmas or Easter, I'd love to go back and do some more work for them. I also got my name in the magazine several times, which excited me probably more than it should. It also caused my Nan to firmly believe that I am definitely going to be famous. Positive thinking and all that! Here's said name in said magazine:

I also moved house during the summer, and obviously spent a lot of time with friends and family. Overall, it turned out to be a very hectic but really good summer than went far too quickly for my liking. Back into hardworking mode (kind of) now. Next few blog posts will be of much more interest - a couple of album reviews and single review. If work allows, I'll try and keep this blog as updated as it should be. Fingers crossed.