Sam Smith is a pillar. Okay, maybe he's not a pillar, but I have so much respect for him as an artist. The way he lets out all his emotions on his songs are just something to be commended, not many people can do that. Charlamagne tha God, a radio host, came up with a running gag of Sam Smith and Adele being the same person. His evidence was Sam coming out of the shadows when Adele took her hiatus and filling the gap in the market of an artist just standing there with a microphone and piano and their voice and singing their whole entire ass off. I started to actually believe this when Sam sung the theme for the new James Bond movie, the person whose spot he filled in for was Adele. It's just a joke, of course, but it would be easy to actually believe it because they're so similar in their styles.
Let's talk about Sam Smith's vocal style for a minute. His voice is absolutely out of this world. The pitch of his voice allows him to sail through his wide range effortlessly. My one complaint is that his voice can come off as a bitch much, a lot of the time. Let's take "Writings On the Wall" (which I might review later on) for example. His tone is lovely, his vibrato gave me chills and his voice hits notes that I would give my left tit to hit. The song was just in such a high octave (or not, maybe it's just his voice that gave off the impression) that I don't listen to the song that often because I just don't really love that type of song. Sam Smith's voice is so naturally beautiful that I can overlook that in a lot of his music. One thing Sam Smith does that I completely am on board with, though, is he stands there and sings his ass off. No gimmicks, no vocal acrobatics that tire MY damn voice out but he stands there with a microphone and gives you his entire soul and leaves everything on the stage. Or the studio, for that matter. And his music has so much meaning to it. The moment I started loving him was when he won his fourth (I think?) Grammy of the night earlier this year and thanked his ex boyfriend who broke his heart and gave him the inspiration for most of the album. It was a great moment and it was a testament to how much the music on this album meant to him.
I'm simply going to be reviewing selected bonus tracks from the re-release of his debut album, In the Lonely Hour: Drowning Shadows Edition. Maybe I'll get into his original album but that's just too much effort, man.
DROWNING SHADOWS
Absolutely gorgeous. From the phrasing, to his actual voice I was just completely taken by this song. The strings at the beginning allowed for a very epic sound to the song. This was such classic Sam Smith. As he begun the song, it was just him and a piano. Gosh, his voice is just so perfect for this type of music. During the chorus, Smith switches to his falsetto with basically no effort and brought the song into another stratosphere. Let's take his voice away (which is hard to do, clearly) and talk about how gorgeous the instrument track his. It begins with strings and a lovely minor key. The song then just shifts into a piano that allows Sam Smith to play with the phrasing of the song (my personal favorite being "drown in all of my shadows, drown them like before," which lead into a meshing of two world as the strings and the piano come together for an even more epic sound to the already breathtakingly gorgeous track. He belts out certain notes and completely takes it home as he switches back to his falsetto. By the end of the song as he (I'm assuming) add libs the phrase "once more" and he does a subtle run that just fits in so well with the key of the song. It was just gorgeous, this song was perfection and the exact thing Sam Smith does the best (and he knows he is flawless, he just does). 9.5/10
LOVE IS A LOSING GAME
Amy Winehouse was a treasure to the world. While she didn't have an out of this world vocal range, her voice had a rich tone that you don't hear a lot in one lifetime. She was special. She was gorgeous. She had the ability to sing the living daylight out of song. using just one octave, using just the tone of her voice to sell you on a song. This was one of her most beautiful songs and this was unfortunately the final single she released before her death and it was an amazing note to go out on. Amy left the world too soon but what she also left was a beautiful impact that will not be forgotten anytime soon, if ever. Smith covered this song on the Drowning Shadows edition of his album and his voice fit this song like a nice pair of socks. It has just the right amount of substance that Smith does the best. He arranged the song to make it more him and it worked out swimmingly. His vocals soared and you could feel the rawness to his emotions in this song. He sounded wonderful and it was a beautiful cover and a wonderful arrangement. 9/10
NIRVANA
I'm not going to get too much into this because if you're familiar with Sam Smith, this isn't a new release, he released an EP and this was featured on it previously. I'll maybe edit this later when I have more feelings about it but it's classic Sam Smith. He gives you amazing vocals, a lovely beat and while it's not a standout it's miles above what many are trying to do that Smith is doing effortlessly. 8/10
HOW WILL I KNOW
Immediately as I listened to the song, I wondered why Sam changed the lyrics up a little. He's openly gay so why change the pronouns in this song? "Oh it's you, I know..." "How will I know if you really love me?" As I listened to the song further I realized, it didn't really matter. How he chooses to express himself, what he chooses to change is his idea. He's already a musical genius so why would I of all people try and come for his flow? Plus, without any pronouns this is still one of the most haunting and gorgeous covers of a Whitney Houston classic I have ever heard. Once again it's just Smith and a piano, and once again it works out flawlessly and he soars through it effortlessly. Once again Smith covers one of the most recognizable songs of "the voice." Whitney Houston's voice will live on forever and no one could ever come close to touching her legacy. When it comes to this specific song, not only does Smith come as close as any man could possibly come to delivering such a riveting performance of a Houston song, he comes as close as probably not many people ever will. Gorgeous. 9/10
OMEN
I was glad when I saw this was acoustic because I don't really love the song in itself. That being said, per usual, Smith's vocals sound amazing and the keyboards compliments his voice amazing. The accidentals give me chills and they mesh together so well with the vocals. Sam Smith is over here singing for dear life as he belts out the chorus. 7.5/10
STAY WITH ME (ft. Mary J Blige)
Mary J Blige, now, is a pillar. Much like Smith, she can read the DMV guide and make you feel like you just broke up with the love of your life. It was, ironically, when I watched a performance of her and Whitney Houston performing Ain't No Way together when I realized that no matter who she is with she can not only sing a song wonderfully but the emotion she puts behind it will automically take her up to legendary status. She has not only proved she's a wonderful artist but her longevity speaks for itself. She has been active since 1989 and still producing hits. I sing her praises mostly because I don't think she adds too much to the record. Smith already executes the heartbreak like he's been doing this since 1973 so hearing her heartbreak isn't as riveting as it would be if she were performing with someone who didn't know how to execute emotions during a song. That isn't to say it wasn't a treat to hear the two play with each other vocally it just wasn't as amazing as I would have expected it to be but this was the best the song could be. 7/10
I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE (ft. A$AP Rocky)
I have to admit, listening to A$AP Rocky rapping over the beat/track of I'm Not the Only One was sort of beautiful. I already love the song and I love hearing a remix that will add in a rap to it simply out of curiosity. It's amazing to hear two different genres come together so effortlessly and that's what this song did. It didn't change anything about it, it just added something in that worked. 7.5/10
LAY ME DOWN (ft. John Legend)
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| Legend and Smith being my favorites. |
My goodness this was a brilliant way to end the album. This song, much like the previous two songs with guest artists, isn't anything new but when I hear it, it never gets old. Let's just talk about the amazing year John Legend has had. His voice absolutely demolished Glory, the lead single to the SELMA soundtrack. Not only that but his lovely duet with Meghan Trainor was just a wedding song waiting to be played (and congratulations to them, as it just entered the top 10 on Billboard!). John Legend is the type of vocalist to sing the Kleenex tissue song and make you raise your hand up to the good Lord. It was sort of a shock to hear him on this track. Two men singing a love song isn't something you see in this industry too often, but it's just a matter of interpretation. The way they interpreted it was lovely and even if it wasn't, dammit these two sounded so good together it didn't even matter. I mean....duh?! Smith starts out the song like he does on the solo version and clearly it's gorgeous, but when Legend comes in? Absolutely stunning. There's this heaviness to his voice that just lifts you up from the bottom floor of your house and rises you up to your attack in the most glorious way possible. His runs were absolutely stunning. His vocal control is absolutely out of this world and when he hit that falsetto? Man I had to tap out for a second. Their voices fit each other so effortlessly, their harmonies were spectacular and all they needed was each other and a piano. Freaking yes! I would love another collaboration with the two but this is enough to keep me appetite centered for a while. Ugh, just yes. 9.5/10
ALBUM GRADE: A-
ALBUM GRADE: A-
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