Since the release of his debut EP, Something in the Water, back in 2016, Tom Grennan has been considered one of the country’s most promising new talents of recent years. Now he is back with his sophomore album, ‘Evering Road.’
This latest record from Grennan is a collection of songs that detail the breakdown of a recent three-year-long relationship. It’s an immensely personal reflection of being a young man, and coming to terms with the loss of a partner and the aftermath of dealing with a painful breakup.
In comparison to his last record, 2018’s Lighting Matches, this album draws a lot more on sounds of Motown and soul, whilst Grennan’s distinct gravelly vocals remain. Certain elements of gospel music have been introduced here too, which establishes a powerful element to his music. Album opener ‘If Only’ showcases this new sound perfectly: it’s the sort of song you’d hear on a FIFA soundtrack. However, it has enough power to make you want to get up and dance, that’s for sure.
‘Something Better‘ is equally as upbeat as the album’s opener, which of course is very different to the stereotypical breakup album sound that you would expect. There’s certainly nothing sombre about a jaunty piano tune accompanied by the joyful backing vocals of a group of gospel singers.
‘Little Bit of Love’ follows, and on this track, Grennan wonders what his ex is up to now and for obvious reasons, it is one of the more relatable tracks on this album. It is also extremely catchy, and one that’s bound to get stuck in your head, even days after you’ve heard it. The album is full of anthemic bangers and mixed in with slower ballads like ‘It Hurts,’ which is a perfect balance between heart wrenching and overwhelmingly optimistic. There’s really no denying that much like his debut, this album will go down a treat live.
Grennan’s influences of the late Amy Winehouse and Adele shine through just that little bit more on this record, via the use of a more jazzy and retro-sounding style. This can be heard heavily in tracks like ‘Love Has Different Ways To Say Goodbye.‘ Due to the melancholy piano ballad nature, some of these tracks sound as though they are from the discography of artists like Lewis Capaldi. A bit of genre-mixing takes place here, with the addition of Motown and Soul influenced sounds. Grennan also throws in an electronic firecracker with ‘This is the Place.’
‘Let’s Go Home Together,’ a duet with Ella Henderson, is a nice addition to the well thought out collection, depicting the joys of being drunk, and going home with someone new.
Despite the album being full of plenty of tunes fit for the radio and the charts, I can’t help but feel that ‘Evering Road’ is quite a self-centred album. It illustrates an almost selfish outlook on the breakdown and consequent breaking up of a relationship. Grennan’s lyrics don’t really appear to be empathetic towards whoever he is singing about. It almost feels like this album is very much a ‘look at me, look at how great I am’ response to the painful end of a long term relationship, and this is where the album lets us down slightly. However, there is no denying that this album will send Grennan further in his career, it’s just a shame that he approached the tender subject of a breakup this way.
All in all, despite the ups and the downs of ‘Evering Road,’ Tom Grennan has once again created an album that would be perfect to fill a sunny Saturday afternoon, headlining some of the UK’s best festivals.
