#music George Ezra - Wanted On Voyage

Posted on the 30 June 2014 by Abolishconfusion @ac_mag
Like a lot of major label artists with a debut album on the horizon George Ezra featured in many 'ones to watch' lists at the end of 2013 but he never came close to topping them, if there was one male solo artist with a unique voice being number one in 2014 it was always going to be Sam Smith. George is an interesting/surprising musician. Visually you expect some dated jangerly indie pop from the 21 year old so it is quite a surprise when the voice of an aging black man pops out, delivered with a Deep South drawl. Watching him perform is mesmerising. His songs vary from summer chill outs to dark intense heartbreak tales, some catchy, others, haunting.

As a package George isn't a 'star' but I've got a feeling he's cool about that. His vocals belong to somebody at least twice his age and his song writing is beyond his years too. Wanted On Voyage shows his depth as an artist where he experiments with textures and techniques on this debut full of tales that many young men can relate to and girls can lust over. The singles Budapest, Cassy O' and Did You Hear The Rain? are a great introduction to the Bristol-based singer songwriter as they show that he can do intimate, catchy pop and fierce brilliantly.

There's some really gems on Wanted On Voyage, at times his forceful vocals take center stage (Blame It On Me), other times it's the song writing (Drawing Board), summer vibes flow on the lushes Listen To The Man and things turn tropical on the bouncy Stand By Your Gun. Every box has been ticked but with diversity comes a lack of identity and that is where the album falls short. It becomes clear why he appeared in some of those lists just to make the numbers up as there are a few tunes on here also just to make the numbers up.

It's almost an inevitable anti climax but there's at least second record in this kid! Well, I hope so anyway.