:: James Blunt - All The Lost Souls

James Blunt

When I saw the title of this album, I was instantly reminded of the great Doves album “Lost Souls”. Fellow Briton James Blunt burst on the scene in a huge way two years ago and much expectation surrounded this follow-up, “All The Lost Souls”. Would the pretty, instinctive charm carry its weight again? James can certainly write good songs. You wonder why things can‘t be left in simple terms and that it can sound terrific. Many recent day artists have been afraid to show what they are capable of naturally. James has a gentle voice and it really shows on this album. Perhaps he will work on refining his vocal style which could come on future albums. These songs bring life back into the 1970s era and he does it with some style, albeit without the political background of the times. Even the album cover gets into the spirit. The first single '1973’ is quite addictive and is a worthy pop flavour, much in the James Taylor mould. The song was written and mixed at his pad in Ibiza. Straight into the second track ‘One of the Brightest Stars’ and you‘d believe it was Gilbert O'Sullivan reincarnated. The anthemic 'Shine On’ is well crafted while ‘I Can't Hear The Music’ hooks in with a James Bond-style orchestration. Generally, there is no escaping the haunting voice and despite some critics saying he's too formulaic and simply drab and insipid, James is a rare pop vocalist with worthy songwriting skills that will still develop further. The hints of soul, the dark moments, and the uplifting moments give reasonable expectations of a wider-eyed future. In the meantime, enjoy this set.