Ed Sheeran is an artist who needs little introduction, after a few years releasing independently he was snapped up by Atlantic in 2011 but now he is a certified pop-god. When he finds time in between touring the globe playing sold out shows, he also releases record breaking singles, platinum selling albums and hangs out with Big Narstie.
Divide was released in February and is a thoroughly planned project, continuing the tradition of appealing to Radio 2, Radio 1 and 1xtra listeners; a balancing act that many fail to master.
One of the standout tracks Shape Of You, has deservedly received solid airplay since January, and amazingly, at one stage 9 tracks from the album were in the top 10. Shape Of You is a clever blend of styles, borrowing rhythms from southern Asia and the West Indies. The track is brought to life by a deep electronic palette; his occasionally thin vocals are layered heavily with both high and low harmonies to thicken them. This change of direction helps the track to stand out, not only on his album but on the radio too. Softer dancehall and UK funky inspired pop music seems to have taken the place of in-your-face EDM recently, proving that you don’t need to melt someone’s face off to grab the attention of the dance floor. Tracks such as Rihanna and Drake’s One Dance, and some of Major Lazer’s chart toppers have tended to be a little more restrained. Even macho grime stars like Stormzy have opted for a similar sound at times. Ed and Stormzy’s Brit Award performance left many confused and frustrated fans on both sides, and received a mixed response from their wide demographic.
Other than The Shape Of You, the rest of the album comes across as quite safe. Not that you would expect anything too out-of-the-ordinary. Some of Ed’s best work comes from his more urban efforts but most of the ‘rap’ on this release is pretty shameful, from the subject matter to the delivery. There are also plenty of relatively unoriginal tracks, Castle On The Hill sounds like a tired Snow Patrol record for example. Other than the weirdly entertaining storytelling it struggles to take off – something, which happens more than once. Dive however, is one of the releases shining stars; on a similar vein as 2014’s Thinking Out Loud, it is a heartfelt ballad. Not only is it one of Ed’s most honest performances but also one of his most powerful, showing off his impeccable technique, control and range. The track Don’t call me baby, unless you mean it, is an example of world class songwriting, creating tension and emotion, the stellar production is just as unapologetic with a stripped back selection of dusty guitar chops and rim shots.
Irish hip-hop fusion on Galway Girl stands out for the wrong reasons however, before he even begins to sing or rap it has a distinctly 90’s feeling, reminiscent of The Corrs or B*Witched. Divide’s most convincing tracks are often the most delicate, minimal production making way for his voice and guitar. Hearts Don’t Break Around Here is a heartwarming ditty that somehow avoids being cheesy, even with some lyrics that would sound at home on a Disney film. Supermarket Flowers and How Would You Feel are also both decent, but stereotypical slow love songs. Towards the end however, some more Celtic flare and even Hispanic flavours are introduced with Barcelona and Nancy Mulligan.
Some hot and cold patches throughout this release do not distract from another great piece of work from the 26 year old. His unique brand of pop-rap continues to rule the charts; hopefully next time we may hear him flex a few different musical muscles.
Come and visit to see if you agree, test the album out on our huge range of hi-fi systems in our demo rooms.
