Experiences transformed into lyrical beauty in Adele’s 25
Megan Murphy ’17 reviews Adele’s new album, “25”.
Adele’s new album is now available on ITunes and other music providers.
Haunting. Raw. Authentic. Tragically Beautiful. These descriptions are from listeners of Adele on iTunes, who believe that Adele has a lasting impact on pop music with the release of her new album, “25”. Bouncing back from her four year hiatus, Adele is more forceful and dynamic than possible. “25”, released on Nov. 22, 2015, is a masterpiece that sold 2.3 million copies in the first three days. In the album, Adele’s vocals convey a sense of compelling passion unlike any other artist of today. Considering that risky vocal surgery she had back in 2011 threatened to take her pipes away from our ears, “25” emulates the bravery Adele had knowing that she could have lost all usage of her voice.
Upon hearing “25,” listeners expected nothing less than another award-winning album complete with a signature single. Promisingly, the single “Hello” was the first song in history to sell 1 million copies upon its first week of release on iTunes. As NPR stated, the album was a strong display of Adele’s confidence. This confidence has translated into revenue for the singer.
The song “All I Ask” is a favorite of Isabella Shilliday, a junior. “It embodies all her emotions in one perfect song,” she said. Shilliday also admitted that she was one of the 2.3 million people to purchase “25”. Another fan favorite is “When We Were Young.” As Brophy junior William Mulkern said, “It really sends a message of how fast time can fly when you’re in love.” Adele has more variety in her music on this album 25. The rich diversity was not present in her past 2 albums, which were more simplistic with their piano and guitar backing.
This truly is Adele’s best album yet. Agony and struggle are present in her voice, which yet again, is a reflection about past relationships and transitions. But, one does not need to know the singer’s background to understand the theme that flows through each song. From her passion in “Hello” to the acoustic folk guitar in “Send My Love to your New Lover” to the forceful key change in “All I Ask,” Adele puts together “25” as though she were putting her heart back together.
Adele’s husky vocals dominate the album and are rather authentic. However, “25,” according to The Guardian, might not be Adele’s most ambitious or groundbreaking album since it sticks to the vocal conventions she has based her career upon. “25” is not an album to expect the experimental or avant-garde from, rather, it features the sweet crooning melodies we have all come to love from a soulful singer.