Sunday, June 5, 2011

Album Review : Adele - 21



These past few days, I found a new addiction through the music of English singer-song writer Adele. Born on May 5, 1988, Adele has R&B – soul – country soul – blues and jazz genre. Adele attracted the attention of XL Recordings with a three-song demo posted on MySpace and then signed with the label. Since her debut, 19, Adele has received much recognition both commercially and critically.



The album debuted at number one, and has been certified four times platinum in the UK. Her career in the US was boosted by a viewer record–breaking Saturday Night Live episode in late 2008. Adele released her second album 21 on 24 January 2011 in the UK, and 22 February in the US. The album was a critical and commercial success, selling 208,000 copies in its first week in the UK and debuting at number one on the UK Albums Chart, position it managed to hold for sixteen weeks.

She was the first recipient of the BRIT Awards Critics' Choice and was named the number-one predicted breakthrough act of 2008 in an annual BBC poll of music critics, Sound of 2008. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, Adele won the awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.




Adele released her second studio album, 21, on 24 January 2011 in the UK and released it on 22 February in the U.S. The album's sound is described as classic and contemporary roots and country music. The change in sound from her first album was the result of her bus driver playing contemporary Nashville music when she was touring the American South. The first single is a revenge tune "Rolling in the Deep", Adele described it as a "dark bluesy gospel disco tune." The single was a major success and was well received by critics. It has reached number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

21 hit number 1 in Ireland, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Switzerland, Austria and in March 2011 it debuted at number 1 in the United States. In mid-February 2011, after a performance at the Brit Awards, the album track "Someone Like You" went straight to number 1 on the UK singles chart, while the album 21 also remained at number 1. According to the Official Charts Company, Adele is the first living artist to achieve the feat of two top five hits in both the Official Singles Chart and the Official Albums Chart simultaneously since The Beatles in 1964.

21 relies greatly on the same Motown influences with old-school, retro-infused production and the "Supremes-esque backing vocals".  However the album included such instruments as the saxophone, harp,banjo and the accordion, exploring styles ranging from Southern blues and soul music, to jazz and bossa - nova, to alternative pop and gospel infused rock music.

The album comprises mostly slow and mid-tempo ballads and torch songs, characterized by "bold melodies and chest-clutching singing". The main inspiration for the songs followed Adele's break-up, the majority of which began as "drunken diary ramblings", which she later refined into musical compositions. They were written over a three-month period between November 2009 and January 2010. As the album progresses the theme changes from one of anger and defensiveness to feelings of reflection and heartbreak.


My favorite tracks are:
1 – Rolling in Deep
3 – Turning Tables – That I could certainly say that one of the bravest song I’ve ever heard.
4 – Don’t you Remember
11 – Someone like you – That Im officially addicted with.


(facts and info : Wikipedia.com)

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