Poster boy for perseverance alert: After being dropped by a major record label, Sam Fischer’s independently released, diaristic single This City – inspired by how moving to LA nearly broke his spirit – eventually became a viral TikTok moment, which prompted Sony subsidiary RCA Records to slide into his DMs.
Fischer has previously written songs for the likes of Keith Urban and Jessie J, which explains the pinch-yourself feats sprinkled throughout his debut solo album. I mean, Demi Lovato!? Aside from belting like no other, Lovato’s vocalising sounds like a luminous feather hovering overhead during What Other People Say (which also appears on her seventh record, Dancing With The Devil… The Art Of Starting Over).
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A Berklee College Of Music graduate and self-confessed Hopeless Romantic, Fischer specialises in poignant songs about heartbreak, self-doubt and universal human needs (“I just wanna be someone somebody cares about”). “I didn’t know/ I was watchin’ you go…” – that’s some turn of phrase you’ve got there, sir! Fischer’s phrasing and overall vocal performances – vulnerable yet powerful – are consistently showstopping, but geez he makes our heart hurt during Hard To Love: “I’m doing all I can/ To be a better man/ So please don’t give me up/ When I’m hard to love…”
He wrote the upbeat bop Alright (feat. Meghan Trainor) after having a panic attack in the shower, hoping to help others manage and reduce their anxiety. High On You, a swirling waltz, closes out with featured vocalist Amy Shark chuckling softly before acknowledging, “Cool song, Sam.” Yep, he sure knows how to craft a tune.
LABEL: SONY
RELEASE DATE: 1 DEC
