Humble singer is biggest winner

AT this year’s Brit Awards most of the attention was directed towards a certain curly-haired lothario from One Direction and his ex, Taylor Swift, who did her best to slip under the radar at the awards by giving the world a preview of what young Harry was missing.

But through all the showbiz, I was personally delighted to see a humble singer come out as the biggest winner at the awards. The acoustic singer Ben Howard won two awards on the night, rightfully rewarded his great music.

‘Every Kingdom’ is the album that has gained Ben Howard two Brit awards for ‘British Male Solo Artist’ and ‘British Breakthrough Act’, resulting in his album re-entering the chart to cash in on the new fans of Ben Howard.

‘Every Kingdom’ is a relaxed, mellow album with most songs having a ‘folk-pop’ style to them. Howard’s guitar plucking and love-themed lyrics remind me of Ed Sheeran’s ‘+’ which was a huge hit worldwide. Standout tracks in ‘Every Kingdom’ include ‘Only Love’, ‘The Wolves’, ’The Fear’ and ‘Old Pine’ all of which show off his versatile voice from gentle lyrics in ‘Old Pine’ to anthem-like lyrics in ‘The Fear’.

The album has a natural theme with wind, animals, stars and the sea all mentioned. If you like Mumford and Sons, Ed Sheeran, Of Monsters And Men and The Lumineers then you will love this album.

‘Every Kingdom’ is an album that I will always be in the mood for because the songs make you feel relaxed, happy and stress-free. It has also caused me to appreciate the world around me as Ben Howard shows in songs such as ‘Old Pine’ with gazing at the stars at night.

Overall a brilliant album that I could listen to until my ear drums burst.

By Jake Williamson