Conrad Sewell’s debut album has been a long time coming but it’s that same time that has ensured that this release is as authentic as possible. The Brisbane based singer-songwriter made his breakthrough into the industry in 2014 through the Kygo collaboration ‘Firestorm’ and from there he topped the ARIA charts with ‘Start Again’ and captivated listeners with the infectious ‘Who You Lovin’ and ‘Hold Me Up’. But something didn’t feel completely right for Sewell. The music he was releasing was catchy and had substance, but it didn’t completely show listeners who he was as an artist the way he wanted it to. So that’s when ‘LIFE’ was born. This bold and artistic collection of tracks hears him finding his sound, bearing his soul and delivering something different that stands out. The gritty opener ‘Testify’ perfectly sets the tone for this confessional themed record that soars with his powerful vocals. From there the singles ‘Changing’, ‘Healing Hands’, ‘Love Me Anyway’ and ‘Come Clean’ introduce a gospel influenced sound that takes his sound straight to church and projects the emotion in a big way. Title track ‘LIFE’ follows these songs in their footsteps and opens up about falling in love with that one person who makes you feel so comfortable and calm. ‘Light In The Dark’ then gets a little moody and experimental with the production and adds some dark harmonies to compliment the storyline. “I lie awake, contemplating life like a river running wild you can’t contain”. This record does have a very cinematic touch to it and songs like ‘Neighbourhood’ and ‘City Of Angels’ represents that vision, whilst ‘Big World’ takes it to a whole other level. From the opening line, you will be drawn into this autobiographical recount. It’s also a song that will come to life in his live show and be a very memorable moment because of it’s bold production. But the one issue I have with this album is that it’s quite long in duration. With fifteen tracks that sonically sit in a similar sonical space, it becomes a bit tiring. The track-listing needed to be refined slightly to create a bigger impact because the songs in this collection deserve that. There are a lot of strong moments but there are a couple of mediocre ones that dim the intensity of the spotlight.
You can purchase a SIGNED copy of ‘LIFE’ from Sanity HERE; https://www.sanity.com.au/products/2413071/Life_-_SIGNED_COPY