Photo Credit: Press
Words: Anisa Bhana

Britpop legend and The Verve frontman Richard Ashcroft has graced his loyal fans with brand new album ‘Lovin’ You’ ahead of his upcoming tour dates across the UK in famous arenas which follows into next year, with tickets flying fast. Ashcroft has been a renowned and enamoured artist for decades following the success of his band The Verve and their hit single ‘Bittersweet Symphony’, released in 1997, which has since accumulated billions of streams worldwide and continues to be popular amongst all generations, proving him to be a quintessential part of Brit-pop and music history. 

Over the summer, Richard favourably supported his long-time friends, Oasis, on their massive reunion tour with countless sold-out dates as fans eagerly anticipated the long-awaited reunion of the two brothers. Each night this enabled Ashcroft to effortlessly move through his set with unwavering energy, completely captivating the crowd, performing new and old hits from both the band and his solo career, and ultimately refreshing the crowd of his unfaltering talent with his astounding vocals and emotive lyrics which is accentuated and follows on his brand new album.

The leading single and opening of the album ‘Lover’ immediately brings joyous and upbeat vibes, defining the album as playful and inventive with pop-influenced elements, differing from his previous style, yet it still manages to promote relatable lyrics and provide fans with an insight into what the rest of the album will follow. ‘Out Of These Blues’ acts as more of an emotionally moving ballad with emphasis on strings and lyrics that present love as something that is able to transcend and be reflected on which is a constant motif with the lyrics “look how far you’ve come” which adds a sense of unpredictability within the album with the different genres explored.

Throughout the album, Ashcroft continuously shifts the melodies and genres with a faultless run with tracks such as ‘Oh L’Amour’ feeling almost reminiscent of his old style with elements of delicacy –  this track along with the album consistently show vulnerability and seems a project Richard is evidentially proud to share with the world as fans patiently anticipate the release. The raw and powerful vocals which stand out vastly on every track (which is immensely impressive all these decades later),  showcases Ashcroft’s dedication and passion towards the art of music and brings various generations together to collectively witness another era with consistency in flair yet a volatile nature in production and vocals, leaving fans in for a huge surprise.

Towards the end of the album, with final tracks  ‘Live With Hope’, ‘Crimson Fire’ and ‘Fly To The Sun’ along with second single and album track ‘Lovin’ You’  a soaring, spiritual aspect is conveyed with an unstoppable feeling with bigger and bolder sounds, familiar to some of The Verve albums released in the late 2000’s, yet with more despair and longing to understand surroundings, such as on ‘Crimson’ in the lyrics “it’s a strange time to be alive” which completely resonates with its relevance in current times. It is incredibly clear from start to finish the amount of depth, effort and detail that has been poured into this phenomenal album, with a push towards new territory in sound and lyrics that make the listeners feel validated and emotional whilst still having tracks that are fun and able to move to. This ultimately highlights that time has not limited his abilities but has rather aided him in his profession and made him even better.