Oh dear. Yet another Drake album, which is hackneyed, hits the top spot? Seriously, what are people listening to? Once again, it is shite. The biggest surprise was that ‘8am in Charlotte’ had no autotune to spoil it like the rest of the record, so I enjoyed that once I got over the shock.
Song recommendations: ‘8am in Charlotte’
1/10
What is this? His seventh album to get to number one? He’s only three behind Noel Gallagher in that respect. This time, Ed returns with a folky and reflective record that is quite apt this time of year, given the season we are about to enter. The title even reflects that by being called “Autumn Variations”. I couldn’t care less if this is Ed returning to what he knows best; it works for him.
The opener is called ‘Magical’, the title is apt, and the lyrical content, which you will notice throughout, is autobiographical and thought-provoking. Most of the album has this as a constant with some slight, excuse the pun, variations. The subjects include his birth, patriotism, pub talk, et cetera.
The album’s second half gets more adventurous, with Ed being more creative and deviating slightly from the folky first half. ‘ When Will I be Alright’ is a prime example where Ed shows his vulnerability and melancholy and adds a violin to match that emotion. ‘the Day I Was Born’ was also another favourite of mine. Wonderfully autobiographical.
If you like Ed at its simplest, baring his soul on the acoustic, this album is for you. I loved it and the reflective nature. Quite a few people I have spoken to about it do not like “Autumn Variations” and called it “boring”. I’m afraid I have to disagree with them.
Song recommendations: ‘ When Will I be Alright’, ‘the Day I Was Born’, ‘Magical’
8/10
What is this? Like my third review of a Kylie album? I’ve lost track. My most recent review of hers was ‘Disco’, which came out amid one of the lockdowns, and the music within made you yearn to return to the dance floor, be it at clubs, wedding receptions, bars or parties. I also enjoyed listening to it and found it the perfect tonic to escape the drab reality we were all subjected to. However, it could have gone better with the younger generation, which could mean that with streaming services widely available, they can steer clear of radio and television music channels and avoid going to shops to listen. Therefore, they can choose who they want to listen to and become trapped in that mindset. I grew up on everything mentioned in the previous sentence, so my taste has become eclectic. Listening to the radio and watching Later…with Jools Holland gave me an open mind to music. I don’t believe that on these streaming services, the algorithm would recommend Kylie Minogue to a youngster listening to BTS, so therefore, you can see why Kylie hasn’t been as popular with the younger generation (yet.)
I first heard ‘Padam Padam’ on the Graham Norton Show (I think.), which was four months ago when the track was released, and it is still as popular now as it was then. The younger generation will certainly know this one, as the staff of Hobbycraft did a dance for it on TikTok. What is refreshing about the track is that it is uplifting, fun and humourous.
The record is reminiscent of the Europop/Eurodance you would hear on Euro Trash. It may be cheesy, but it is fucking fun and uplifting. We all need to lighten up once in a while. The title track flirts with Kylie going for the Daft Punk approach of using robotic vocals; the saxophone swoons on ‘You Still Get Me High’ and ‘Vegas High’, which have that Europop sound. ‘Hands’ reminded me of Madonna’s ‘Vogue’—especially the rapping verses.
There is no way in hell that “Tension” is nothing more than to promote her upcoming Las Vegas residence shows; I am not having it. It is far too professional just to be regarded as a throwaway. It is Kylie at her best, touching on all sorts of emotions, and it deserves its number-one placing. I do not believe “Tension” got there by sales alone; I reckon that the younger generation heard ‘Padam Padam’, streamed her, and fell in love with the music. The TikTok video would have also drawn their attention. I also love the cover art. Nice and vibrant
Song recommendations: ‘Hands’. ‘Vegas High’, ‘Padam Padam’
8/10
I couldn’t stand Busted in the early 2000s. Their pop-punk anthems used to make me cringe. As I got older, I mellowed to them more. Now, I had no fucking clue what I was supposed to review. All I saw were their greatest hits reimagined with guests such as All Time Low, Wheatus, You Me at Six and the Jonas Brothers (Among several others.). Oh, and how could I forget their cover of ‘MmmmBop’ featuring the original band Hanson (Actually, you may think that Hanson would be shit live, but as they have got older, their gigs are pretty good and not just laced with bubblegum pop.). This album, which is their first ever to hit the top spot, is the band returning to the studio to reimagine their songs with more maturity to show off their ability as serious songwriters rather than the pop chart mugs we saw them as initially.
This record will be followed by a sold-out UK tour a week after (I think.). I feel this album was nothing more than a cash-in. Sure, I liked ‘Air Hostess 2.0′ with You Me at Six, ”Who’s David 2.0’ with Wheatus, and ‘Crashed the Wedding 2.0’ with All Time Low, but I don’t know…I don’t think the songs have changed that much from the originals. It just seems to fit into that whole “nostalgia” vibe going on at the moment.
Song recommendations: ‘Who’s David 2.0′ ft Wheatus, ‘Crashed the Wedding 2.0’ ft All Time Low, ‘Air Hostess 2.0’ ft You Me at Six
6/10
I fucking loved Olivia’s debut, “Sour”(Or is it “SOUR”?). She is different from your usual music star in the charts. She has plenty of fucking attitude and is unapologetic about it. Her debut was outstanding, and that punk spirit and it was definitely refreshing to see the singles chart shaken up by this angry lady.
She certainly isn’t your usual Disney Kidz star. She doesn’t give a fuck what you think about her. She swears profusely, has a punk spirit, and loves to rock out. “GUTS”, the follow-up to “SOUR”, makes that album look tame. Olivia cranked the amps up to 10, and her attitude and opinions. Like every record, there is a lull and softer moments, but she does go tonto for most of the album. She isn’t here to please her label boss but to tell you her life with no holds barred. She doesn’t give a fuck about being commercially viable. This record is indie to how a label wants their musicians to be.
Olivia grew up listening to her parent’s music collection, which consisted of grunge and rock, and she has incorporated that into this album, but with subjects of dealing with fame, relationships, and other teenage angst topics. I fucking love the opener ‘All-American Bitch’. You hear an acoustic being plucked at the intro and verses before it fucking explodes in the chorus as well as her vocal volume and attitude. The electric guitars add to that effect. I also loved the solo.
‘Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl’, which resembled ke$ha-like songs. You have softly spoken verses; occasional rapping with big choruses is another highlight. As mentioned, there are quieter, more reflective moments, but do not lack the angst featured on the full-in rock tracks. She even shows insecurity about her appearance on ‘Lacy’, an acoustic track, and confesses about being envious of what others see as “Perfection”. The soaring vocals bring that out. As gloomy as it is, ‘Making the Bed’ reminded me of that dream pop sound that we associate with Katy Perry in the late noughties and early tens. Like ‘All-American Bitch’, ‘Vampires’ starts softly with a piano rather than an acoustic guitar before synths and guitars hit you by surprise.
I was slated for rating “SOUR”, but fuck you. This girl is so versatile in her writing. She writes full-on rock tracks to tender piano ballads, and the vocal delivery convinces you every song means everything to her. Her lyrics, at times, also add an element of sarcasm and comedy.
This record is like a person with schizophrenia. One minute, it is full-on, then tame, and then full-on again, repeating a spontaneous tempo. In musical terms, it’s like having iTunes, iMusic, Tidal, Spotify and Deezer on shuffle. You never know what’s coming. Despite that, every record should have heavy and reflective moments. It shows the songwriter’s versatility as well as showing they are human.
Besides the Reytons, the Lathums, Frank Turner, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Foo Fighters, the album chart lacks records that spark energy into your ears. Olivia has come along and made the album of the year that deserves to be nominated for the Mercury Prize next year. I wonder if this album will be number one next week. The album chart hasn’t had a mainstay this year yet, and the way music is these days, I don’t expect “GUTS” to break that but fuck me. It is a fantastic yet schizophrenic album. Olivia is a different breed to the new age pop star, which is a breath of fresh air. Another fucking monumental record. We need more musicians like this in the singles chart instead of nodding puppets for the label bosses.
Song recommendations: ‘All-American Bitch’, ‘Making the Bed’, ‘Ballad of a Homeschooled Girl’
9/10
The duo played a few songs on Later…with Jools Holland back in May, and ‘Mountains’ stood out, which showed that this was an album to look forward to. Contrary to what occurred at BBC’s 1 Big Weekend festival, where Mike and Ben showed their disdain at the crowd for not giving their performance enough attention, their teasing of the record on Jools’ show showed that that would be water under the bridge as the duo still had the sound that everyone fell in love with in the last decade.
This is the Brighton duo’s fourth studio album, and despite being short, I enjoyed it. I have heard indifferent opinions on the record. My only complaint is it was far too short at 31 minutes 22 seconds( Even the bonus tracks see it under 40 minutes.). Still, at the same time, the duo appear to be taking it back to the days when a single played on the radio was extremely short (Usually just under 3 minutes or barely over.). The album is also their debut in producing their music, which has borne fruit. It is not because it has obviously hit the top of the chart, but because the songs are good. One of the factors of Royal Blood experimenting in the studio was there was no one to tell them to play it safe.
There are plenty of influences of the late David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust-era on ‘the Firing Line’ and the Beatles during their psychedelic phase. We then have funk on ‘High Water’ and the usual metal sound on ‘Shiner in the Dark’. There are even quieter moments with piano ballads—something which we are unfamiliar with the duo.
I loved the guitar solo on ‘There Goes My Cool’. The album is an eclectic mix of sounds that has inspired Mike and Ben at some point in their lives, and we are only starting to hear it now the duo have self-produced. Of course, there is the usual lull, which is found on every record you have ever heard during the middle, but overall, despite its short length, this was an excellent listen.
Song recommendations: ‘the Firing Line’, ‘There Goes My Cool’, ‘Everything’s Fine’
8/10
I am trying to understand why I am bothering to write a review on this. It was absolutely shocking. The only tracks worth listening to were the interludes. The rest of it was utterly shit.
No rating
Who could forget 2015 when Hozier went toe-to-toe with James Bay for the anthem of the year? I am trying to remember who won precisely, but both anthems are now somewhat iconic. That was the beginning of Hozier’s already lengthy career. We might not have heard of him until then, but he was in a band before and did several live performances as a backing vocalist, et cetera. His anthem, ‘Take Me to Church’, finally got him noticed. The whole album was good, and the songs performed live were quite celestial. According to an interview with Jools Holland, “Unreal Unearth”, his third studio album, is inspired by literature, such as Danté.
What I found somewhat surprising is Hozier has written only two songs on the record, and the rest are co-written. You would think Hozier wouldn’t find this necessary, as he has shown he is a great songwriter on many occasions. As you can imagine, the two he wrote are by far the best work on the album. One of them would be seen as controversial over here as it details how the Irish citizens suffered at the hands of Britain during the invasion. Particularly the holocaust, which is dressed as the “famine”. The track in question is called ‘Butchered Tongue’, and over this plucked acoustic tune, Hozier gives a fiery vocal delivery about the injustices. If you can’t handle sheer honesty in the song, then don’t listen. He doesn’t hold back. It was also refreshing to hear a Gaelige song that introduces the album—further stamping his Irish identity. The second, written by him, is towards the end of the album ‘Unknown/Nth’, an ethereal track riddled with metaphors.
Another of my standouts are songs I had earlier in the year when he performed on Later…with Jools Holland. ‘Eat Your Young’ is quite a disturbing track. Still, it has some fantastic guitar work by Hozier and then ‘Francesa’, a highly emotional track about someone dying of an incurable disease. The vocal delivery on both are raw and sung with absolute conviction. Hozier’s lyrics go from biblical references, to the outlandish naming of car parts. It is beyond insane as the record progresses. The biblical references kind of blend in with the whole Danté-inspired premise.
In the Spring edition of Later…with Jools Holland this year, Jools felt the album was eclectic, and Hozier agreed. Indeed, this record has funk, soul, Celtic, and rock, to name a few. As well as having co-writers, Hozier also did an indie-inspired track called ‘Damage Gets Done’ with Brandi Carlile. Then there is a jazz track, ‘All Things End’. You would be forgiven for detecting a metronome, but it is surprisingly finger clicks, complete with a gospel choir in the chorus.
It was disappointing to find Hozier acquired co-writers for this album, and you feel cheated knowing he did. Yes, co-writers can write, but they need help understanding the meaning of your songs. As mentioned earlier, Hozier, in his own right, is a great songwriter, so this decision seems odd. Hozier is known for writing passionately about things he is interested in or his life. I can only think the record label browbeat him into using co-writers because they would be able to stem his creativity on what can be controversial opinions. The real test is how they hold up live. Although the album might be slightly manic with the genre-hopping, I still find it quite a good listen.
Song recommendations: ‘Francesca’, ‘Butchered Tongue’. ‘De Selby Part 1’
8/10
It is no secret that I’m not too fond of Liam’s solo material and the fact he hangs onto yesterday. Oasis is done, and he should move on. All good artists evolve, but the lad who burst onto the scene sounding vocally like a blend of Ian Brown( Listen to the really early stuff, and he sounds almost identical) and Tim Burgess is still stuck in his ways and won’t move away from the Oasis sound. It also makes me laugh how he slags his brother off at every turn, even getting his little sheep ultra parka monkeys to pile on, then plays only the Oasis classics written by his brother. Liam has the likes of ‘Meaning of Soul’, ‘I’m Outta Time’, and ‘Songbird’, to name a few.
He is so nostalgic that at the venue where Oasis broke the attendance record in the 90s, he did it again as a solo artist and pulled in just over half of the attendance from 1996. You will recall he wore a white jumper to begin with before taking it off to reveal a white shirt. This time, he wore white again in the shape of a lightweight hooded jacket—however, this time with lightly tinted sunglasses on, if I recall correctly, a wet two nights.
Unfortunately, due to the abuse of his voice, the vocals are not as strong anymore. The last time we heard Liam sing with strong vocals was in 2001. As the “Heaven Chemistry’ tour of 2002/03 got to the halfway point, it was evident his vocals were going. He puts this down to how he delivered, but I have heard many vocalists who project their voice more, for example, Tom Jones, who also smokes and drinks as much as Liam did, and his vocals still remain strong. It appears to be an excuse, and he hides behind neglect.
Of course, as well as those craving for the return of Oasis due to them likely not being born or too young to attend, there were those from 1996 who returned. As you can imagine, the setlist was choc-full of iconic songs by his former band, and even some numbers like ‘Roll it Over’, which is relatively obscure.
I’ll give him his due on the performances; his vocals sounded better, but if I want to hear Oasis songs live, I will go on YouTube to watch them and remember I was fortunate enough to have seen them before their demise. Many asked me if I was planning on getting tickets for Knebworth Park last year, and I said, “If I want to see Oasis live, I’ll just go on YouTube’. I moved on from Oasis a long time ago. It’s time some of you did and let it remain with its legacy intact. Oasis did it all. This is different from the Stone Roses, who have unfinished business. If Oasis did return, it wouldn’t be the same. Oasis was a time and a place. Sorry if you missed it.
Song recommendations: ‘Champagne Supernova’, ‘Rock n Roll Star’, ‘Supersonic’
6/10
I had no idea who Cian Ducrot was, but when I heard him, I thought he was a cross between Dermot Kennedy, Lewis Capaldi, and Danny O’Donoaghue. The Cork native has been around since 2018, and this is his debut album, which saw the teaser ‘All for You’ reach 5 million streams to date and ‘I’ll be Waiting’ that top inside the top 20 of the singles chart over here.
The opener is none other than the title track, which is thought-provoking, to say the least. It also leads you to the concept of the record being about strong and damaged relationships and how, in both kinds, we mature and learn from them. His vocals, not only on this but throughout, with that unmistakable Cork lilt, have a soaring ache.
This album has been eagerly awaited, and you can tell he has invested a lot of time in the studio because it has taken him since his inception to release his debut. He had even promoted this before it was even released by supporting Ed Sheeran on tour, where he garnered more fans, and doing intimate gigs at the tail-end of June. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, the record takes you on a journey of how we can grow from situations, no matter how bad or good, and we can adapt to them accordingly.
Look at the lyrics to ‘I’ll be Waiting’:
If you ever wanna fall in love, if you ever wanna bet on us, if you ever wanna be my one, I’ll be waiting.
From these lyrics, you can see that Cian is talking personal where someone is hesitant about committing to a relationship with him, and even though he is doing his thing, he is open to a relationship if that specific individual is willing to commit.
‘Heaven’ is a highly emotional track, where he talks about his solid relationship with his brother. This piano ballad is accompanied by loving lyrics about how they will carry each other through thick and thin.
’Thank God You Stayed’ is another exquisite track exploring all the qualities and flaws of lovers in a relationship. There are also other highlights, which are deeply personal about his father and mother.
This album was a pleasure to listen to; I can only see him going from strength to strength. It’s going to be hard to improve on such an outstanding debut.
Song recommendations: ‘Heaven’, ’I’ll be Waiting’, ‘Victory’
9/10
Honest Opinions 