Posts Tagged ‘The Bell’

EI8HT – Nik Kershaw

After his huge success in the mid 80s as a pop pin-up through to his move into song-writing as the pop bubble burst at the end of the decade, Nik Kershaw quietly returned to singing his own songs at the turn of the millennium.  Seemingly happy to exist on the fringes of the turbulent music industry, Nik has released a handful of his own albums over the last ten years or so and has otherwise contented himself with writing countless chart bothering tracks for those more inclined to face the glare of the spot light.

That was the Then, this is very much the Now however and August 2012 will see the release of Nik Kershaw’s eighth studio album entitled EI8HT, and this feels like a very different beast.  Nik admits that this time he is actually ‘making an effort to tell people about it’ and having had the benefit of numerous plays, I would say he is right to do so.

EI8HT is a mature pop record and this will no doubt put off the ‘trendy’, whilst some people’s perception of Nik may be stuck in the 80s, Kershaw himself has long since unshackled himself from the trappings of the decade.  That is not to say that his sometimes quirky sound is lost, you need only listen to his ode to our addiction to  gadgets and gizmos, ‘Stuff’ or ‘Enjoy The Ride’ with the cheeky line ‘I hope you wear, your funky pants’ to find the ‘Kershaw’ sound is still firmly imbedded throughout.

‘These Tears’ kicks things off with just a hint of 80s synth magic to take the edge off a rueful chorus that has Nik declaring ‘these tears are all I have, all I have to remind me, these sweet tears are all I have’.  First single ‘The Sky’s The Limit’ is, on first listen, a gentle even slightly safe track, but the more you hear it the more the soaring melody washes over you and you can hear the master ‘pop’peteer at work.  It is no wonder everyone from Lulu to Let Loose have employed his services over the years.

The album is well paced as whilst this is unashamedly a pop record and there are no dramatic surprises, the flow throughout means there is never a dip in quality and whether it is the gushing pop froth of ‘You’re The Best’ or the restrained splendour of ‘The Bell’ nothing feels forced or out of place.  Nik has far more than a few pretty tunes up his sleeve however and lyrically ‘EI8HT’ is bursting with tongue-in-cheek humour one minute and honest emotion the next.  Perhaps the most pedestrian track is ‘Rock Of Ages’ which is a little too by the numbers but it still has a chorus that is hard to ignore.

‘EI8HT’ marks the first studio album for six years but this time has clearly been well spent.  This is an album of instant pop hooks and slow burn beauty, a proper pop record from a proper pop star.  Hopefully this will mark the start of a new chapter and more albums will follow, now wouldn’t that be good…

Jules says…

To find out more about Nik Kershaw, visit his official site HERE.