Adele. A name that has been rolling off the tongues of many people that I know in recent months, for all the right reasons. What a set of lungs. What a soothing and almighty sound. What a dignified and inspiring performer. What a life lived up to now. (Whoa, this is sounding deep already...)
Adele has a voice that is neither angelic nor raw. A voice that is quite incessantly deep but just as pretty, cultivated and warm. A voice that is her strength, her instrument and her image. A voice full of soul that sets her apart from so many others on the popular music charts.
21 is Adele's second studio album and follow-up to her debut, 19. Put simply, it is an age-appropriate (aka. 21 year old's) review of the thoughts and feelings involved in being “In a Relationship”, though mostly from a retrospective viewpoint (aka. at the point of breaking up) and reflecting upon what has and could have been. (You may now be experiencing flashbacks to, say, Hilary Duff's 'Dignity' or Taylor Swift's 'Fearless' - but please - there is more to this, so fight the - possible - fear and do read on!)
The script may fall close to cliché, with many references to 'storms', 'fire', 'rain' and 'memories made', but Adele's powerful and perfectly punctuated vocals allow her to paint a rich, engaging and surprisingly grounded (yet, age-appropriately fickle!) set of personal, yet equally worldly pictures of love, heartbreak, longing, resilience and hope of repair at the mercy of a partner, throughout 13 beautifully crafted tracks.
What sets Adele, and this album, apart is that none of the songwriting or portrayal is too dreamy or whiney – it is adequately mature, modest and not too introspective. She manages to convey what seem to be sincere and personal experiences with some amount of wisdom (for a 23 year-old!) in a rather anonymous and de-contextualised manner, so that the words and feelings may resonate with anyone who has ever experienced companionship or encountered despair at the hands of another human being – and lived to remember it.
21 is hallmarked by momentum, which must reflect some form of deep personal strength (or desire for it at the least) in Adele herself and certainly imparts a sense of it upon the listener. A sense of resilience is particularly prevalent in “Turning Tables” but a willful sense of intensity is first founded within the opening track, (and first single) “Rolling in the Deep”. This sense of momentum is maintained throughout the album in different ways—be it by the inclusion of percussive instruments, a chorus backing, emotive strings or simply with touching intonation and words (especially in the second single "Someone Like You").
I'm not sure whether to call this Soul, Jazz, Country, R&B or Blues and Roots but Adele's style and voice easily allow you to recall the likes of Duffy (especially in the upbeat number named “Rumour Has It”) and Dolly Parton (especially in the mournful ballad “Don't You Remember”). Nevertheless, 21 demonstrates that Adele has a distinct image and sound of her own, that is stylish and very emotive. Her cover of “Lovesong” by The Cure demonstrates this particularly well as the song is reinvented and presented as an acoustic ballad that barely resembles the original at all!
Like any “breakup” album, many of the songs on 21 are slow and emotional—some tug at your heartstrings and have you hanging on every word, and a few verge on soppy, but I guess it all depends on your taste and mood. The atmosphere imparted by most of the songs rolled into one after my first linear sampling as the themes, vocal range and tempo are all quite similar. I have to say that, altogether, the album isn't exactly uplifting, in fact it verges upon being a little too emotional and I did long for something a little bit more upbeat by the end of it, mainly because the sad songs outnumbered the jazzy ones—vicarious heartbreak is a tad depressing! (Thankfully DJs and upbeat Youtubers have recently been rolling out some good House and Dubstep remixes!)
Overall, Adele is just awesome! 21 is a sophisticated amalgamation of a brilliant voice, thoughtful instrumentation and relevant material, that reflects a well-developed and consistent style and a lot of artistic talent. Adele is an artist who has come to be considered popular for a truly valid reason—because of the poignancy and sincerity of her words that can resonate with all sorts of people and, especially, the quality of their delivery.
No scandal, no baggage, no glitz, ditz or an overbearing personality—just talent and determination in the form of an almighty voice.
Best taken in small doses on repeat with coffee or tea—because good things are best experienced in moderation, with warm beverages! :P
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