From Every Sphere

The world of the male solo artist, for so long the rather dull domain of the Stings and David Grays of this world, has gone through something of a resurgence of late - not least through the work of one man bands such as The Streets, Mull Historical Society and Aqualung. Although he has chosen not to work under a nom de plum, Brighton’s Ed Harcourt has much in common with Messers Skinner, McIntyre and Jones.

From Every Sphere is an album that challenges at every turn, not least through Harcourt’s intense attention to sonic detail. Not content to simply bash out a series of catchy pop songs, the album is steeped in countless different instruments and scratchy effects and samples.

On more on one occasion, this approach gets more than a little too much, leaving ‘Undertaker Strut’, ‘Ghostwriter’ and ‘Jetsetter’ straining under the weight of their own intentions. What saves the album, however, is that it essentially is a series of catchy pop songs given a clever twist.

Harcourt has a wonderful way with a melody and the likes of ‘All Your Days Will Be Blessed’, ‘The Birds Will Sing For Us’ and ‘Fireflies Take Flight’ are as emotive as their titles would suggest, while ‘Sister Reneé’ is as beautiful a song as we’ve heard anywhere this year. Harcourt is still a little unsure of whether he wants to be Elton John or Tom Waits but, if his dilemmas can continue to inspire him to heights such as these, it can only be a good thing.