Laura Welsh
Soft Control
Release Date: Mar 10, 2015
Genre(s): Pop/Rock
Record label: Universal
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Album Review: Soft Control by Laura Welsh
Acceptable, Based on 5 Critics
Based on rating 3.5
Let us get a lazy comparison out of the way first. Change a single letter from Welsh and you get Welch. Florence Welch of Florence And The Machine is in her late 20s, a striking looking red headed singer songwriter who sings somewhat haunting, soulful pop and at times uplifting music. As is Laura Welsh.
Based on rating 6.3/10
Before even releasing her debut, Laura Welsh underwent a series of transformations. From discarded band names—she has performed as Laura and the Tears as well as Hey Laura—to changes in style, the English singer has done her share of exploration before finally landing on her own name and a strong, confident electro-pop sound for Soft Control. It’s a big record—dramatic crescendos, orchestral arrangements, pounding percussion—for which Welsh enlisted a bevy of big name production and songwriting talent, including Emile Haynie, Dev Hynes, John Legend, and a slew of others.
Based on rating 2/5
Through a combination of patience and deciding on a name, it’s taken Laura Welsh five years to release an album. Starting as Laura And The Tears, changing to Hey Laura, and finally settling with her full name, Welsh’s career perhaps points to indecisions as much as self discovery. She’s been compared to Adele and Jessie Ware, channelling a soulful element to her vocals and a romanticism in her lyrics.
Based on rating 4/10
Head here to submit your own review of this album. Whilst listening to this album I came up with an idea for a Buzzfeed list: 10 Things You Can't Make Better By Chucking Shit Loads of Money At It. Let me start things off: You can't throw money at it and hope for the best. That's not how good music works.
Opinion: Excellent
Having been tipped as a next big thing since 2013, Laura Welsh’s debut album has taken its time to arrive. Yet despite featuring a raft of collaborators, which may explain the delay (they include Dev Hynes and Lana Del Rey producer Emile Haynie), Soft Control sounds homogenous. The mood is cautious, blue and occasionally detached but that’s informed by the nature of the stories here, which like Björk’s Vulnicura explore the nature of love and heartbreak.
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