BEST OF THE NEW RELEASES...
JAMES ARTHUR: Bitter Sweet Love (Columbia)
A WELCOME change from The X Factor’s usual boy-bands and pop divas when he won in 2012, Arthur has had a topsy-turvy career. The singer from Redcar, near Middlesbrough, lost his original record deal, but bounced back with 2016’s chart-topping Say You Won’t Let Go — and he maintains that momentum with a rockier approach on this fifth album.
His bluesy rasp comes into its own on aching ballad A Year Ago, while Blindside recalls fellow North-Easterner Sam Fender. If Fender is the Geordie Springsteen, maybe Arthur is the ‘Boro Boss.
GRUFF RHYS: Sadness Sets Me Free (Rough Trade)
THE Super Furry Animals frontman looks to 1970s pop, soul and country on a solo album that augments melancholy songs about gentrification and heartache with lush arrangements.
Inspired by a Welsh holiday (‘the beer was warm the chips were wet’), Bad Friend pushes the notion that lousy chums are better than none, while the title track is an homage to Dolly Parton. Gruff’s desire to pen ‘pocket symphonies’ can get the better of him. But, with Kate Stables’ backing vocals, there’s a warmth that’s hard to ignore.
TOM ODELL: Black Friday (Urok)
FORMER Brits Critics’ Choice winner Odell made four albums of unspectacular piano pop, even soundtracking a department store Christmas ad, before springing a surprise with the best record of his career in 2022’s Best Day Of My Life, a stripped-down set of hauntingly beautiful tunes. This sequel lacks its predecessor’s raw emotional punch. Somebody Else, which opens with acoustic guitar, is a heartfelt breakup track, but the addition of a string section — plus some gratuitous instrumental interludes — disrupts the impact of some decent songs.
ELISABETH LEONSKAJA: Schumann & Grieg Piano Concertos (Warner Classics)
PIANISTS are not supposed to play as well as this when they reach 77, but Elisabeth Leonskaja is exceptional. The Schumann was written for a great female pianist, the composer’s wife Clara, and it was she who persuaded Robert to write three movements rather than one. Edvard Grieg was inspired by Schumann’s example but his piece is very different, with a blazing opening salvo and many tuneful touches of Norwegian folk music thereafter.