Album Review: Oliver Daldry - The Boy Who Fell

Oliver Daldry
The Boy Who Fell

19 year old singer/songwriter Oliver Daldry is set to release his debut album ‘The Boy Who Fell’ on October 7th. His years of writing songs and vast array of influences has cumulated in a release which takes extremely personal lyrics and that musical experience and ends up becoming something quite wonderful.

Starting with the shimmering sounds and gentle acoustic guitar of opening track ‘Colours’, there is a softness and almost childlike quality to the vocals which fits so well adding a poignancy to the lyrical content. It is a quiet opening that brings us into proceedings gently before the quickly padded drums that rings in a funk inspired atmosphere on next track ‘Bones’. This one is reminiscent of the sounds of early Vampire Weekend with a brilliant rhythm, upbeat nature and our first opportunity to really see the vocal range of Daldry with vocal lifts at the end of lyrics. Title track ‘The Boy Who Fell’ is about a boy who ended up crushed by his unfair circumstances. Featuring repetitive guitar and a constant rhythm which is almost settling in its tone while piano and the reliable cymbal hit add grander elements to the song’s wandering melody.

There is a mix of down tempo, emotional acoustic ballads and upbeat, poppy tunes found on this album. The former found in elabroate melodies, vocal repetition and plenty of emotion on ‘Breaking’ and piano interspersed between guitar hooks, handclap beats and strings which adds fullness to the soft sounds of ‘Faded’. While ‘Concrete’ showcases an cheery nature in its intricate musicality is tinged with country sounds and vocals reminiscent of Paolo Nutini and ‘Smile’s happy guitar and beat guaranteed to get your feet tapping brings you into the more pop inspired track, the childlike edge is back to the vocals here and with a really good rhythm this one is a sing a long classic in the making.

Everything on this album fits well together and nothing seems out of place from the gentle piano, repeated guitar chords and soft drumbeats layering up one by one to create a flowing atmosphere on ‘Almost Gone II’ to the plucked guitar strings in the style of folk classics merged with a soulful voice on ‘Higher’, a track which only has the bare bones stripped back to reveal its wonderful harmonic nature in the minimal sounds.

With a tame swagger and sexiness to the guitar and almost swooning background sounds album closer ‘Jupiter and Mars’ is a lot different to the other tracks but it still fits with everything else. It is very much a love song with romantic lyrics and swaying rhythm, perfect for a dance with your loved one. It’s quite an excellent way to finish this album.

For the first album from a 19 year old you would usually expect throwaway lyrics and plenty of musical mistakes but that is not the case here. All those years spent practising his paid off to create a wonderful debut with song writing beyond his years having put so much of himself in his lyrics and a raw passion which makes it so heart-breaking to listen to, it will resonate with listeners from all backgrounds.

Check out the album teaser below:



To find out more about Oliver Daldry visit his website, his Facebook page, check out his videos on YouTube or follow him on Twitter - @OliverDaldry

Credits

- Picture