Chaos And The Calm

by 
AlbumDec 15 / 201412 songs, 48m 23s89%
Folk Pop Singer-Songwriter
Noteable

James Bay has a voice like a knife. On his debut full-length, the nascent English singer/songwriter fulfills the promise of his early recordings with a collection of lushly arranged rock he recorded in Nashville alongside GRAMMY®-winning producer Jacquire King. The soulful “Let It Go” features a hypnotic guitar melody and stunning vocal performance, while shades of Bruce Springsteen can be heard in the windows-down rush of “Get Out While You Can.” Elsewhere, Bay’s voice cuts through the Fleetwood Mac–like swing of “If You Ever Want To Be In Love” with veteran aplomb.

4 / 10

A record sadly lacking in chaos.

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7 / 10

Music Review: James Bay - Chaos And The Calm.

Brits favourite James Bay ticks all the right boxes on his anodyne debut album

6 / 10

The Brits critics’ choice churns out some predictably safe, critic-proof blues-rock anthems

40 %

In the vein of fellow Brit balladeers Tom Odell and George Ezra comes James Bay, a husky-voiced blues-rocker whose curated image invokes the impassioned troubadour.

Album Reviews: James Bay - Chaos And The Calm

James Bay's album is so formulaic it could have been generated by a computer programme, says Helen Brown