Richard Ashcroft, the leading man from the band, The Verve, has some outstanding solo stuff. I’ve given some of his other albums a listen, but haven’t had the chance to write about one on my first play-through until now. Keys to the World (2006) is Ashcroft’s third solo album, and was released just before The Verve got back together for that most recent album, Forth (2008). Wikipedia lists the genre as post-britpop, and folk rock. Though this album apparently received mixed reviews, I’m super excited to give this one a listen tonight. With that said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Why Not Nothing?” starts out with some great, strong drums, and some really interesting guitar. Oh wow, that electric guitar feels like it’s really stirring things up. That bass is almost hidden behind the scenes, but gets so low and really props the song up quite well. Ashcroft’s vocals always have some great flavor to them. Though Ashcroft has a totally different style, the 90s britpop brought singing to the mix that harkened back to the flavors of charismatic singers like Mick Jagger or Jim Morrison. Oh wow, that crunch from the guitar is contrasted by the smooth distortion of the other guitar on the other side of the mix. Oh wow, Ashcroft comes in with a second vocal line from the edges of the soundscape and really adds an unexpected and sweet layer to the mix for the outro.
“Music Is Power” starts out super sweet with some swirling little organ playing, and some melty electric guitar, and some really sweet acoustic guitar that sort of jangles alongside the drums to frame the song really well. That bass playing is super awesome with the drums too. Wow, this song is pretty sweet. According to Wikipedia, this song samples “It’s All Over” by Curtis Mayfield, and though I haven’t heard that particular Mayfield song, this song is really sweet. There’s some absolutely great flavor, and really has some great feel. That little string section is used excellently in the track.
“Break the Night With Colour” has a really bright piano start, that almost sounds sort of like a piano layered with a harpsichord or something of the sort. Oh wow, there’s almost a staticky sound in the track, like it’s being played back from a vinyl record. This song feels like it picks up so much momentum, though keeps on the same groovy steady pace. Wow, the instruments all have such great feeling in the little individual parts that stand out throughout the song. All the instruments in the song have such a steady feel that really all kind of stand on one another and create a really sweet song that’s really easy to listen to and get lost in.
“Words Just Get in the Way” has a really delicate heartfelt feeling to it, but Ashcroft makes it sound so cool. These claps alongside the strumming of the acoustic gives a great little rhythm that the drums play off. The effects to the acoustic guitar always make it sound so melty. Ashcroft is always so laid back in his delivery, but there’s always a ton of feel. Oh wow, this electric guitar little solo is almost swirling like it’s played through some organ effect. All of these songs have such an orchestral feeling with the way they all slowly build and naturally crescendo at the end of them.
“Keys to the World” has a really awesome feeling that feels like it’s building up to something awesome – it’s almost reminding me of some sort of strange medley of a song that takes influence from dance club music and repackages it with an orchestrally building rock song. That vocal sample in the background is really sweet, and the bass, piano, and guitars all sound like they’re a song from build to the climax of a montage demonstrating a character’s long journey in a film of some sort. Really sweet song.
“Sweet Brother Malcolm” is something of a gentle tune that starts out with some soft acoustic guitar that reminds me of “The Sound of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel, and some close vocals from Ashcroft. Slowly other instruments are gently introduced, like some orchestral strings slowly overtop of the tune. There’s little little pieces from the bass and other instruments that almost exit as quickly as they came into play. All these songs sound orchestrated in a very deliberate way, and really demonstrates Ashcroft’s songwriting and arranging skills.
“Cry Til the Morning” has a very slow feel, but at the same time Ashcroft is creating a lot of tension through his vocals peering through the bit of void that’s created. The song finally breaks through where other instruments join in and the flavor is both immense and awesome. Wow, those guitars are really going in, in such a relaxed, deliberate, flavorful way. Definitely a sweet song.
“Why Do Lovers” has a very gentle, caring feeling in the playing. The piano, guitar, and shakers from the percussion are all so gently caressing the song, and Ashcroft’s vocals sort of tie a bow on the song really well. Wow, this song hits some absolutely stupendous notes at the chorus. It really feels like the song releases so much tension I didn’t even notice the album had built up. Wow, this song really tries to sweep you up, really sweet playing. That acoustic guitar strums with such great force, and combined with the orchestral strings and the drums really makes the song feel as though as crashing down around you. Really sweet song.
“Simple Song” indeed has a relatively simple hook at the start from the piano that’s echoed by the guitar and strings. Wow, the song is basically building up to mini crescendos as the song progresses through to the chorus each time. It’s pretty sweet. Musically speaking, from what I can gather from my knowledge, there’s nothing overly complex going on, but the instruments and vocals are delivered with a touch that delivers that extra oomph to the song. I’m really digging how orchestral this song feels, similar to the whole album for that matter too. Sweet song.
“World Keeps Turning” has a really interesting feel to it that sort of has instruments gently go from one side of the soundscape to the other, while the bass, drums, and acoustic guitar keep things grounded in the center. Wow, Ashcroft really has some great delivery in his vocals in this one – there’s a line that never really stops and keeps on giving. This song feels like it ties the album up really well, and has a really great finishing note.
“Break the Night With Colour (Live At Kings College)” wasn’t on the original release of the album, but this song was really sweet so it’s nice to revisit. Wow, this live version also somehow has some little crackles like it’s being played from vinyl as well, like the studio version. Oh wow, these effects on the vocals are sweet. Each note played by the piano feels so weighty, and this song really feels like it’s driving forward so much momentum. The drums feel like they’re driving the song forward with such great feel in its groove. The instruments in this one are so sweet, and the song carries on that orchestral feel to it. Really an awesome finish by revisiting this song again to a great album.
This album was really sweet – there’s so much flavor in each track, and everything in it sounds so deliberate in its delivery. I think Richard Ashcroft could possibly be a conductor of some sort with the way the music is arranged. If you enjoy really polished music, and also enjoy britpop to any degree, there’s a decent chance you might enjoy this one. If you do decide to give it a listen, I do hope that you enjoy it at least as much as I did.
-A