Jamie Sutherland has released his second solo album The World As It Used To Be. The Broken Records frontman has trodden his own indulgent path and created a truly inspirational record.
The album opens with Start Again, a recent single that’s characterised by its jolly guitar strums and a peppy harmonica which together create an upbeat vibe from the off before Sutherland’s vocal kicks in with “She wrote her name on the pages of love, she strapped herself to the mast. Believed that all she gave would return, of course she knew she would last.” As the track progresses the accompaniment builds to incorporate strings and subtle keys which provide further depth. The bridge of “Hold me and tell me everything you know or we’ll start again” leads seamlessly into the chorus which consists of a spine-tingling harmonica solo. Sutherland’s vocal is honed to perfection to complement the fast-paced guitar and he has an undeniable country twang which is filled with warmth.
We’re passengers on the folk train and it’s speeding at full pelt when we head into Like You Did Before. Fast-paced percussion and soulful harmonies accompany Sutherland as he croons “Love me, Love me, love me like you did before.” Strings soar and keys just about keep up as a cacophony of sounds come together in an exhilarating crescendo.
Other recent single Some Things Hurt A Little More opens with gentle guitar strums with a folky inflection. They set the scene and provide a pared-back accompaniment to Sutherland’s mellow vocal. It’s a vocal that’s laid bare and is raw in nature when coupled with solely acoustic guitars. The chorus of “And some things hurt a little more, some things hurt a little more, some things hurt a little more, this one’s you” highlights the feeling of melancholy that’s laced so deeply within the track and how Sutherland’s heart has been left exposed. A cacophony of keys and percussion elevate the track and lend a breeziness which juxtaposes heavily with Sutherland’s now higher key and somewhat haunting vocal that sings “Show me how I can reach you, show me how I can reach you, show me how I can reach you, cos I never knew.” The listener is left standing on the edge of a proverbial cliff edge as we’re left wondering if closure was ever found following the loss of this relationship.
You can hear the inspiration from classic American artists such as Bob Dylan and Roy Orbison on You Were My Friend. The piercing harmonica opening gives way to acoustic guitar strums overlayed with Americana-esque guitar plucks and even though it’s a track about loss with lyrics such as “I sing to your smile, your kindness and laugh. And I sing to the joys of the past and I miss you always to the last, you were my friend” there’s an overwhelming sense of joy that resonates from start to end.
The tempo is taken down a few notches on While I Sleep. A gentle ballad where Sutherland’s honey tones are accompanied just by guitar plucks and intermittent strings and keys. This flows nicely into Always Be, another example of Sutherland creating a clever juxtaposition between solemn lyrics such as “scatter my ashes along this coastline, tie me to it forever more” and upbeat, peppy accompaniment.
All You’ve Ever Known Of Love is a forlorn ode to a love once held but now lost, the pain seeping through in the poignant chorus of “cos someone’s got a hold of your heart, cos someone’s got a hold of your heart, cos someone’s got a hold of your heart, and it isn’t me.”
Title track The World As It Used To Be is Sutherland’s “worry song” where he puts his thoughts about the state of the world we’re living in to music. He references rising seas and attacks on free speech, expressing his concern for the world his children will be growing up in compared to the one he grew up in in the 90s where the global problems we face now were in their infancy.
The album is drawn to a close with We Will Rise which, especially following the previous track, ensures that the final theme the album ends on is one of hope and optimism. Stripped back, the track draws on euphoric strings, a deep, slow beat and the mantra of “we will rise above the darkness” to bring this most compelling and thought-provoking of albums to a fitting end.
When speaking of The World As It Used To Be Sutherland said “I self-consciously wanted to write an adult record, in the style of John Prine, Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen’s later work, and as I have gotten (a little) older, I have found myself gravitating to songs which talk with the sense of experience that I was starting to feel. That things aren’t black and white, good and bad, ecstatic or despairing, that there is nuance in everything and detail is most important – all with the knowledge that in understanding a little there was so much more to learn.”
After finding success with Broken Records which released two albums Until The Earth Begins to Part (2009) and Let Me Come Home (2010), Sutherland released his debut solo record Bruise in 2020 to critical acclaim.
Find out more about Jamie Sutherland here and have a listen to The World As It Used To Be below.