Sam Smith – Love Goes (Album)

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Love Goes is the third studio album by English singer and songwriter Sam Smith. It was released on 30 October 2020 through Capitol Records. The album was originally titled To Die For and was due for release in June 2020 but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Smith also felt it was insensitive to use the word “die” due to what many people were going through.

Smith described the album as their “first proper heartbreak album”. In an interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Smith said

“I’d say [this was] the first proper time I’ve been actually heartbroken. That feeling of they’re gone, you can’t sleep, the really, really bad feeling. The others were the idea of it and it was pure unrequited love. This, I would like to say that we loved each other. So, I definitely, definitely loved him. So yeah, it was proper.”

— Smith speaking to Zane Lowe.

Tracklist:

01.Young
02.Diamonds
03.Another One
04.My Oasis (feat. Burna Boy)
05.So Serious
06.Dance (‘Til You Love Someone Else)
07.For The Lover That I Lost
08.Breaking Hearts
09.Forgive Myself
10.Love Goes (feat. Labrinth)
11.Kids Again
12.Dancing With A Stranger (feat. Normani)
13.How Do You Sleep?
14.To Die For
15.I’m Ready (feat. Demi Lovato)
16.Fire On Fire
17.Promises (feat. Sam Smith)

OVERALL RATING: 4½ stars

LÉON – Apart (Album)

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LÉON’s sophomore album came about after a period of great change in her life, shortly before the pandemic rocked all of our worlds. So creating Apart, out today, was unlike any recording experience she’d had until then.

The singer-songwriter, born Lotta Lindgren, came home to her native Sweden at the end of 2019, after a year of touring her self-titled debut. As the adrenaline of constantly being surrounded by her bandmates and crowds of fans died down, Lindgren also had to deal with the end of a relationship, after splitting with her longterm boyfriend.

She rang in 2020 from Stockholm, living alone for the first time, and dealing with her grief and isolation. Then the pandemic hit. But Lindgren took this solitude in stride, and started writing as she did before she got involved in the music industry — entirely on her own.

Apart was completed in Stockholm from start to finish, with producer Martin Stilling, an old friend of Lindgren’s. Together, they took the vulnerability of her songs and made them into a cinematic, new album. The impeccably placed string sections and stunning harmonies make for an all-consuming sonic experience. On Apart, Lindgren is the most vulnerable she’s ever been, and it’s a welcome evolution.

“I think it’s just honest — very honest,” LÉON says of the album. “All the songs were pretty emotional to make for me. It’s very personal.”

Below, LÉON talks to PAPER about the unique experience of creating an album in the midst of a pandemic, and how that resulted in a certain return to form in terms of her creation process, as well as the healing powers of making music.

Tracklist:

1 Head And Heart On Fire
2 And It Breaks My Heart
3 Crazy/Stupid
4 In A Stranger’s Arms
5 Chasing A Feeling
6 Falling Apart
7 Who You Lovin
8 Seventeen
9 Tell Me
10 Die For You
11 Apart

OVERALL RATING: 5 stars

TAEYEON – #GirlsSpkOut (Mini Album)

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GirlsSpkOut is the second Japanese mini album by Taeyeon. It will be released on November 18, 2020 with the song “#GirlsSpkOut” serving as the title track.

The song “I Do” was previously released on December 1, 2019.

The song “#GirlsSpkOut” was released digitally on October 1, 2020, along with its music video.

Tracklist:

1.”#GirlsSpkOut” (feat. CHANMINA)
2.”Worry Free Love”
3.”Be Real”
4.”I Do”
5.”Sorrow”

OVERALL RATING: 5 stars

Lindsey Lomis – In the Madness (EP)

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Rising Nashville powerhouse singer songwriter Lindsey Lomis is back with her major label debut EP In The Madness. Lindsey hails from Nashville and has had music in her blood ever since she was 9 years old. Music has always been in her life. She is truly a pop treasure with comparisons to Maggie Rogers and Hozier. She’s definitely a sophisticated soul with a young perspective outlook on life. You can really see her authentic self in her music. Lomis writes from the heart, and from experiences in her life that have shaped her so far. She released her EP Chapter 1 in 2019, which is a stellar work of art. Her debut single “Feel” is cross-genre and cutting-edge; a song about the drama of teenage friendships, veering toward the darker edges of adolescence. She followed those songs up with “Bones”, and “Slow Motion” featuring superstar singer songwriter JoJo.

Now Lindsey is gearing up for her Warner Records debut with her new EP In The Madness. “Music is the one thing that really helps me process the chaos and connect with other people,” she says. “I hope this EP allows my audience to simultaneously acknowledge the craziness of the world while also finding the joy within it. These songs will make you feel something; they are the hopeful light—the magic in the madness—that we all need right now.” The EP features the previously released singles along with three new unheard tracks, “Magic In The Madness”, “Into You”, and “Do You See Me”. Each track on the album really shows just how versatile Lindsey really is in her music and songwriting abilities. The EP starts out with “Magic in The Madness” which a beautiful raw track that really showcases Lindsey’s soft, breathtaking vocals. “Feel” and “Bones” are the more upbeat tracks on the EP and infuse elements of pop, and R&B. “slowmotion” with JoJo is more of a ballad infused with R&B. Their voices together are smoother than butter. They fit together so well. The EP closes out with ballads “Into You” and “Do You See Me”, which are perfect tracks to close out the EP.

The EP as a whole is a brilliant work of art and something you can tell that Lindsey put her heart and soul into. She put her true authentic self into it. . “I want my songs to be that for someone; when they come home from a long day they drop the weight of the world off their shoulders and feel alive again.” She knows how much music can change lives, and she relishes the opportunity to be that artist for a new generation. Lindsey is a force to be reckoned with and there’s a lot of great things in store for her! We can’t wait to see her rise to stardom.

Tracklist:

1.Magic in the Madness

2.Feel

3.Slow Motion (feat. JoJo)

4.Bones

5.Into You

6.Do You See Me?

OVERALL RATING: 3½ stars

Cam – The Otherside (Album)

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The Otherside is the second studio album (third including her independent release Heartforward from 2010) by American country artist Cam. It was released by RCA/Triple Tigers on October 30, 2020, five years after her previous album Untamed.

The album broadens Cam’s musical stylings, with some tracks including electronic, R&B and soft rock elements paired with her trademark acoustic country pop. Songwriting collaborators on the record include Jack Antonoff and the late Avicii as well as Sam Smith and Harry Styles, who Cam toured with in 2017 and 2018 respectivly.

Tracklist:

1.”Redwood Tree”

2.”The Otherside”

3.”Classic”

4.”Forgetting You”

5.”Like a Movie”

6.”Changes”

7.”Till There’s Nothing Left”

8.”What Goodbye Means”

9.”Diane”

10.”Happier For You”

11.”Girl Like Me”

OVERALL RATING: 3½ stars

Tori Kelly – A Tori Kelly Christmas (Album)

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A Tori Kelly Christmas is the fourth studio album by American singer Tori Kelly. It was released on October 30, 2020, through Schoolboy and Capitol Records. It is Kelly’s first holiday album, and was executively produced by Babyface.

Tracklist:

1.”Silent Night”

2.”25th”

3.”Christmas Time Is Here”

4.”Joy to the World/Joyful, Joyful”

5.”Sleigh Ride”

6.”O Holy Night”

7.”Gift That Keeps On Giving”

8.”Elf Interlude”

9.”Let It Snow” (featuring Babyface)

10.”O Come, O Come Emmanuel/O Come All Ye Faithful”

11.”Go Tell It on the Mountain”

12.”This Christmas”

13.”Hallelujah”

OVERALL RATING: 4 stars

JoJo – December Baby (Album)

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December Baby is the first Christmas album by JoJo, released on October 30, 2020, via Warner Records. The album was first teased by JoJo on October 13, 2020. The album features half Christmas cover songs and half originals.

Tracklist:

1.Noelle featuring Jacob Collier (intro)

2.Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

3.Oh Come All Ye Faithful (interlude)

4.December Baby*

5.Coming Home*

6.The Christmas Song

7.Deck The Halls (interlude)

8.Wrap Me Up*

9.North Pole*

10.What Child Is This (interlude)

11.Silent Night

12.Wishlist featuring PJ Morton*

13.We Wish You A Merry Christmas (interlude/outro)

*denotes original song

OVERALL RATING: 3½ stars

Kate Miller-Heidke – Child In Reverse (Album)

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Child in Reverse is the fifth studio album by Australian singer-songwriter Kate Miller-Heidke. The album was announced on 6 August 2020 and released on 30 October 2020.

Child in Reverse is Miller-Heidke’s first studio album in six years, following on from 2014’s O Vertigo!. It has been described by her team as “her most pop album yet”.

The album was recorded in Melbourne, produced by Evan Klar and features 11 songs about love and fear, memory and empathy, rage and redemption. Miller-Heidke said “What I love about Evan’s style is his freshness, a feeling of spontaneity. Musically the whole album came together really smoothly. I think that comes across when you listen to it.”

Despite her achievements in opera, musical theatre and screen production in recent years, Miller-Heidke said she keeps “..getting drawn back to pop music”. Miller-Heidke said “The minimalism, the economy… I find that incredibly rewarding and challenging. It’s like a quest to nail the perfect pop song. When it can be done, for me, as a listener, it’s my favourite music.”

Tracklist:

1.”Deluded”

2.”Simpatico” (featuring Mallrat)

3.”Born Lucky”

4.”Twelve Year Old Me”

5.”You Can’t Hurt Me Anymore”

6.”Little Roots, Little Shoots”

7.”Hectic Glitter”

8.”People Pleaser”

9.”A Quiet Voice”

10.”Child of Divorce”

11.”This Is Not Forever”

OVERALL RATING: 4 stars