Tom Odell’s voice first graced my ears through the transformative and enticing single Another Love. Taken from his beloved 2013 debut album, Long Way Down, the song began my infatuation with the English singer-songwriter. Therefore, I was pleasantly surprised that the bar was raised high when it came to his latest release, Wrong Crowd.
Met by the pulsing drumbeat and a simple keyboard melody of the title track, I was immediately put at ease. Odell’s vocal then came seeping into the song, his performance subtle.
Singing of a mother’s angst towards her son’s adolescent antics, Odell’s voice is soon joined by a running electronic tone and a whimsical whistle.
Finding the perfect meeting place between pop and rock, Odell adds a sprinkle of his familiar dance element to the second single, Magnetized. The ode to an unrequited infatuation recalls recent Coldplay releases with its utilisation of percussive pop.
Slipping into an R&B groove is Concrete. A seductively slow kick drum and alluring bass line are all it takes to remind you that this artist has grown up in more ways than one. An unexpected step for Odell, it’s a sure fire sign of genre development.
Constellations soon strips his sound back to a beautiful piano led ballad. Rich in string arrangements, the song is the first of its kind on the record and is soon followed by the whistle filled Sparrow.
While Silhouette is another fine addition to the album, it’s the 22 second Jealousy that really engages the ear on the second part of the record. It’s a simple, yet stunning piano piece, however it’s out of place nature creates quite a strange listening experience.
Daddy is perhaps the most dynamic of the collection and tells the tale of a young man’s loss of innocence as a result of his troubled family.
Ambitious yet obviously attainable, Wrong Crowd is the singer/songwriter’s most concentrated release so far.
BY PHOEBE ROBERTSON
