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Kicking off a new contract with Island, Will Young also seizes the opportunity of a new label to retreat from the electro stylings of 2011's Echoes on 2015's 85% Proof. He doesn't entirely leave synthesizers behind: the album's opener, "Brave Man," is as sleek and glassy as the best Ryan Tedder and he revisits urban soundscapes on "Like a River." Usually, though, Young spends much of 85% Proof alternating between effervescent neo-Motown bounce -- a sound best heard on the single "Love Revolution" -- and stately soulful marches reminiscent of Adele and Sam Smith. While the latter may or may not have considered Young an influence, there's little doubt that Young isn't shy about operating in a post-Sam Smith world, happy to indulge in a bit of high-thread-count soul so melodramatic it feels operatic. Because he has vocal chops, this doesn't feel like either a stretch or thievery, and while it'd be nice if the slower songs were as sticky as the speedier tunes, this nevertheless maintains a classy, well-manicured mood throughout.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Rick Koster, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Mark Rankin, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Richard George, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Chris Worsey, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Burdge, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Everton Nelson, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Humphries, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Mima Stilwell, ComposerLyricist - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Julia Singleton, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Sally Herbert, String Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Seton Daunt, Electric Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Pigott-Smith, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Nick Barr, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Max Baillie, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Reiad Chibah, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Oli Langford, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Alison Dods, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, Keyboards, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Rick Koster, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Richard George, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Chris Worsey, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Burdge, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Everton Nelson, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Humphries, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Julia Singleton, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Seton Daunt, Electric Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Pigott-Smith, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Nick Barr, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Max Baillie, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Reiad Chibah, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Oli Langford, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Alison Dods, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, Keyboards, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Ivan Matias, ComposerLyricist - Mark Rankin, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Robert Borrmann, ComposerLyricist - William Robert Young, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Rose Adelaide Stilwell, ComposerLyricist - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Andrea Monica Martin, ComposerLyricist - Edmund Louis Clement, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Rick Koster, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Mark Rankin, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Richard George, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Chris Worsey, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Burdge, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Everton Nelson, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Humphries, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Mima Stilwell, ComposerLyricist - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Julia Singleton, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Sally Herbert, String Arranger, AssociatedPerformer - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Seton Daunt, Electric Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Pigott-Smith, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Nick Barr, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Max Baillie, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Reiad Chibah, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Oli Langford, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Alison Dods, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, Keyboards, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Stephen Wrabel, ComposerLyricist - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Dan McDougall, Bass Guitar, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Rick Koster, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Richard George, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Chris Worsey, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Burdge, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Everton Nelson, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Ian Humphries, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Julia Singleton, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Seton Daunt, Electric Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Tom Pigott-Smith, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Nick Barr, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Max Baillie, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Reiad Chibah, Viola, AssociatedPerformer - Jemima Stilwell, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Oli Langford, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Alison Dods, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, Keyboards, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Nick Jarl, ComposerLyricist - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Richey McCourt, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Ash Howes, ComposerLyricist - Richard Stannard, Producer, ComposerLyricist - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Ben Baptie, Mixer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Ben Baptie, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Ben Baptie, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, ComposerLyricist - Jemima Stillwell, ComposerLyricist
℗ 2015 Will Young
Elvis Presley, ComposerLyricist - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Ben Baptie, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - James Eliot, Producer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 2015 Will Young
Burt Bacharach, ComposerLyricist - Hal David, ComposerLyricist - Ian Burdge, Cello, AssociatedPerformer - Will Young, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Stuart Hawkes, Mastering Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Tom Pigott-Smith, Violin, AssociatedPerformer - Jemima Stilwell, Percussion, AssociatedPerformer - James Eliot, Producer, Mixer, Drums, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel
℗ 2015 Will Young
Album review
Kicking off a new contract with Island, Will Young also seizes the opportunity of a new label to retreat from the electro stylings of 2011's Echoes on 2015's 85% Proof. He doesn't entirely leave synthesizers behind: the album's opener, "Brave Man," is as sleek and glassy as the best Ryan Tedder and he revisits urban soundscapes on "Like a River." Usually, though, Young spends much of 85% Proof alternating between effervescent neo-Motown bounce -- a sound best heard on the single "Love Revolution" -- and stately soulful marches reminiscent of Adele and Sam Smith. While the latter may or may not have considered Young an influence, there's little doubt that Young isn't shy about operating in a post-Sam Smith world, happy to indulge in a bit of high-thread-count soul so melodramatic it feels operatic. Because he has vocal chops, this doesn't feel like either a stretch or thievery, and while it'd be nice if the slower songs were as sticky as the speedier tunes, this nevertheless maintains a classy, well-manicured mood throughout.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 15 track(s)
- Total length: 00:52:37
- Main artists: Will Young
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Universal-Island Records Ltd.
- Genre: Pop/Rock Pop
© 2015 Will Young ℗ 2015 Will Young
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