Ellie Goulding’s new album, Halcyon, improves on her previous album but sticks to her roots.
Ellie Goulding, known thus far as the singer of “Lights,” released her latest album, Halcyon, yesterday. This collection has fantastic songs that showcase her remarkable voice and tendency toward catchy, electro-pop beats. Goulding clearly wanted to break away from her hit song in order to show that she’s more than just a Top-40 artist. While she did not completely surprise listeners, she revealed her true abilities through this compilation.
Goulding’s Lights debuted at No. 1 in the UK in 2010 and became quite popular in America shortly after. What really set Goulding apart from other artists in her first hit was her high-pitched, raspy voice that blended well with the upbeat music. Now she is utilizing her unique sound to make her new songs truly great.
The album has an indie vibe that still clings to aspects of current pop music, much like Fun. Her interesting voice takes some time to warm up to, as in the slightly rough introduction in “Don’t Say a Word.” She tries to play with her singing abilities and ends up sounding a bit like an inexperienced American Idol contestant, but she soon finds her niche, and the song goes back uphill.
Throughout the rest of the album, Goulding continues to focus on her voice with some songs that are slower, but still just as appealing as the more upbeat ones. “I Know You Care,” for example, is more Adele-esque as it is a slower song that features just piano and vocals. The simplicity is something different from the rest of the album, but it shows that underneath her catchy hit song, there is pure talent.
However, Goulding still holds onto her roots in this album, especially in “I Need Your Love,” including Calvin Harris. This song has all of the qualifications to be the next party anthem with a dance-inducing beat and lyrics that are easy to memorize.
Goulding’s music has an underground feel to it, like a female version of Cage the Elephant mixed with dubstep minus the bass drops. Songs such as “Anything Could Happen,” “Only You” and “Atlantis” are remarkably fun to listen to. The only problem is that they’re hard to sing because she reaches such a high octave.
As much as Goulding tries to branch out in this compilation, she also holds on to what made her famous: great beats. She successfully shows that she is more than a one-hit wonder, just not necessarily in the way she had hoped. But it certainly works for her.
