EMELI SANDÉ
How Were We To Know (Chrysalis)
Marking 10 years as a British pop sensation, Emeli Sandé brings us her second independent album, How Were We To Know. An exploration of love in all its stages and complexities, the album comprises 11 heartfelt tracks. The lyrics are infused with raw emotion and experience, amplified by the Scottish chart-topper’s unmistakeable vocals.
The soul-pop lead single There For You, released in late August, blends a mixture of sounds from bass to beats to a saxophone solo while Sandé makes a statement about how, despite emotional turbulence, she’ll always have love for her former squeezes. Conversely, the title track captures the heartbreak that comes after a failed relationship and boasts perhaps the most powerful vocals on the album.
All This Love battles the complication that comes with loving too hard, True Colours is a slow number expressing self-love and compassion, and things pick up with My Boy Likes To Party – an alt-pop hit with trap flavours, complemented by Sande’s iconic husky vocals, I’s this reviewer’s album highlight.
words EVE DAVIES