Ed Sheeran Album Review

The positive comments that have come from the general public about Ed Sheeran after his number one single "The A Team", are astounding. The man can do no wrong in the eyes of music fans. Or can he?
His slight urban style is mixed together with a weak hip-hop rhythm and a vocal pattern that varies from half arsed rapping to depressing love ballads. Mr Sheeran has been accused of being too cynical about the music industry yet he does carry a strong message. In his song "You Need Me, I Don't Need You", a beat-boxing manifesto, he arguably tries too hard to convince us about where he's coming from. However, being my personal favourite track on the album, the song does highlight long lasting issues that lie deep within the music industry. What a relief that someone like Ed has emerged into the charts at number one and gets regular radio play. Thank God he isn't mainstream.



If you haven't seen him in concert, you wouldn't have anything against his debut album. But this record is miles apart from his own voice, one guitar and loop pedal that made him different in the first place. The album features weird, off beat drum patterns, violins, pianos and a bass guitar. This is not what Sheeran fans would've expected. This is shown through the lame and horribly corny "Kiss Me". It sounds dated which is such a shame coming from someone who has an obvious drive to succeed.



However, it is an album that grows on you. If you forget about all the little things that annoy you about the album, good tracks start to emerge. For example, on first listen to "Grade 8" you wonder if Ed had smoked something before recording the track but it grows on you. You notice this as you find yourself bobbing along to it, singing virtually every word.



It is not a great debut album. And fans that have followed Ed since he first started making a name for himself, notably in the "Nando's Skank" are felt to be let down by what can be interpreted as "selling out". But there are tracks on that album that emerge. From no where. They grasp their acoustic strings, beautiful voice, and melodramatic lyrics and entice you. Ed Sheeran is not a corperal sell out and who are we to judge him on the music he makes. Every song has a message behind it and he tells poetic stories. Not everyone in the charts can do this. Yet, after seeing him live, I feel let down by the record as I expected much more from the ginger singer/songwriter.

Rating 6/10