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'Wrong Crowd' Album Review

A Review of Tom Odell's 2nd Album Which Came out Last Year on June 10th

By Sean RamsdenPublished 6 years ago 17 min read
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Wrong Crowd

Tom Odell. Born 24th November, 1990.

Tom Odell started playing in pubs, with a band he called Tom and the Tides. They managed to release a song called "Spider," which you can find on YouTube.

In 2012, Odell released his first EP which included the songs "Another Love," "Sense," "Can't Pretend," and "Stay Tonight - Demo." "Another Love" was the one that was big, and got Odell recognised. Now with over 148million listens on Spotify, and over 158million views on YouTube, "Another Love" is still his most successful song to date.

Since then Odell released an album called Long Way Down, which was top of the charts. Odell's other big song is "Real Love," which he sung for the John Lewis advert in 2014.

Last year Tom Odell released his second album and named it Wrong Crowd. This was a very successful album, Odell got to play live on many TV shows such as The One Show, Michael Mcintyre's Big Show, The Graham Norton Show, and many more. However, the Wrong Crowd album did fall short to his previous album, by the fact that it did not claim number 1 in the charts. The album lost out to Rick Astley's album 50.

In this review I am going to give a review of each song of the deluxe album. On April 4th, 2016, Odell released the title song "Wrong Crowd."

"Wrong Crowd" was released as a single on April 4th, 2016, along with a music video directed by George Belfield. With Odell's second album, he wanted to change what he had made in his previous album, he wanted to make this new album much bigger and much more band related.

The release of "Wrong Crowd" definitely told his fans this. The music video opens with Odell sitting in his hotel room, listening back to a video he took with his ex. This video included his later release "Constellations." It was a nice start, it made it feel like this is going to be a new journey, the start of something exciting.

Soon the "Wrong Crowd" song kicks in, with the deep bass sound of a feet tapping melody. Altogether, "Wrong Crowd" is a great song, definitely one of the best from the album. The direction of the music video suits the song perfectly, especially with the shots of Odell walking through corridors and into parties. The song is very original.

Later into the song the sound of guitar rifts and drums builds up the song to make it sound like the sort of song you should listen to if you wanted to get yourself excited, and ready to go into anything dancing. The song then finishes on its deep bass melody, with a few whistles added in. The music video then ends with a hint to the next music video "Magnetised."

"Magnetised" was released on April 15th, 2016. This song became the most popular from the album, gaining 7 million views on YouTube and over 26 million listens on Spotify.

The music video starts with a car, sitting at a beach side, and a cheetah (Sergei) walking down the stairs from the "Wrong Crowd" music video. Odell's singing voice comes in, singing about animals, and hinting at being one with nature (part of the meaning of the music videos).

The music video was shot in South Africa, where they managed to get some beautiful shots of the sunset over the beaches and the city. The chorus then comes in. "It's not right, I'm Magnetised...." The sort of thing that anyone would love to scream out and sing when they're home alone.

Again, Odell is telling his audience that this album is going to be bigger in its sounds and involve his band much more. The sound of drums build up, the chords of the piano get louder, then the song drops for people to dance to. The music video includes the sound of the car engine here, which adds to the intensity of the chorus.

The music video includes some amazing shots, and is much lighter in its colours compared to "Wrong Crowd." The video fits the song well, personally I would say the "Wrong Crowd" video is better, but this all depends on whether you prefer fast paced intensity, or a more calm moving video.

Altogether, the song is great. It is also Odell's best attempt at making a pop sounding song. It is loud, it is very band involved, and it wouldn't be out of place at a party.

Concrete was released on June 7th, 2016. The song, again, is very band related, and actually includes nearly no piano at all. This album Odell worked closely with his drummer, Andy Burrows, so many of the songs include the sound of drums. This song is partly made by the drums.

The music video is set in a small studio space, almost like a living room, a setting that Odell uses a couple times throughout the album. The music video opens with the text Concrete, in the font that Odell made sure was used for the album. The opening shot is of the drums, which has a picture of Sergei the cheetah on. The drums rolls in, and Odell quickly begins to sing.

The song starts off in a slow pace, with the sound of the bass and clapping moving the song along. Odell turns to look at the camera as he begins the chorus. Later on, the song begins to get louder as he finishes the chorus.

This song uses Odell's band a lot. It is a great song, maybe not one of the best from the album, but definitely something that you'd be happy to sing along to in the car.

This song was released as a single, but without a music video, on 5th May, 2016. If you were missing the songs that were on the first album, and you preferred Odell to be on piano, then this is the song for you. Even though Odell wrote this song with his drummer, Andy Burrows, it actually includes no drums, only piano and Odell's singing voice.

"Constellations" was previewed at the beginning of the "Wrong Crowd" music video. It is a great song, and can get the tears rolling for some. The song starts slow, Odell singing about a restaurant meeting with a previous partner. As the song moves along, it does get slightly louder with the introduction of a quiet orchestra sound.

If you want to relax, or have sad thoughts, then "Constellations" is great. It is nice and calm, and includes some relaxing chords on the piano.

"Sparrow" was released along with the album on June 10th, 2016. It is a very unique song, which Odell came up with when he was sitting in the garden watching a sparrow.

The song starts with Andy Burrow's feet tapping drums, almost sounding bongos. A beautiful piano melody then comes in, the sort that would take a while to learn yourself. Tom Odell begins to sing, asking the sparrow why he is so sad. Even though this song is just about a sparrow, really Odell is explaining all his own thoughts.

"Sparrow" is a song of one verse/chorus, that repeats four times, but each time it gets bigger. With the sounds of drums, whistling, and echoes helping to build it up. At the end of each verse, the song calms down for Odell to sing a high pitched line, the song then moves forward by Odell playing the piano melody. This repeats until the last time, where the song does not calm down for him, so that he instead has to sing over the drums, whistles and echoes.

Altogether, this is a great song. One of my personal favourites from the album. Definitely a song that will get you moving and start tapping the tune on your desk.

This song was also released with the album on June 10th, 2016. It starts with a slow tune on the piano. Odell's voice comes in, still calm and slow. Just as the chorus starts, the drums kick in and begin to build up the song. The chorus ends and the drum and piano hit a chord, wait, and hit a chord again, they repeat this to make stutter sound.

The song is what it says on the tin. It's about Odell getting used to living without his partner. The song builds up as it goes along, adding in crashing chords everywhere it goes.

Altogether, this is a really good song. It may just go into the list of the songs that are not as good as the others, but it's still another one that you'd like to hear on the radio, or that you would put on if you were high on energy.

"Silhouette" was released along with the album on June 10th, 2016. Later on, on 25th November, 2016, they released a music video for the song.

"Silhouette" is Odell's first attempt at using strings in his music, and I think he has done a good job. The song opens with strings, the slow sound, making you question where he is taking this song. "Silhouette" is arguably the most different song on his album, unlike any other he has done.

The beat then kicks in, a beat that sounds like something from ABBA, I wouldn't be too surprised if he said he was influenced by them for "Silhouette." So if you like ABBA, listen to this. The music video shows Odell practising on the piano, and getting nervous before the curtains open.

He comes out from behind the curtains to show that no one is in the audience, until a woman walks in and sits down. The same person that was in the "Wrong Crowd" and "Magnetised" music video.

The chorus begins. The sort of song that might make you raise your arms and wave them around. The music video again fits the song quite well, another good job from the director George Belfield. It is only set in that theatre, but the emotion definitely comes across as Odell sings and runs around like its his last performance ever, whilst we see the woman begin to cry in the audience.

Altogether, another great song from the album. However, a song that has some mixed opinions from fans, but there is no getting around that when Odell is creating something so different to the rest of the album.

"Jealousy" released along with the album on June 10th, 2016. "Jealousy," just like "Silhouette," had a music video released later on, on 6th January 2017. The music video does not use the original studio version, so is more a recording of a live performance.

"Jealousy" is very jazzy. The music video includes only piano, but the studio recording has some quiet drums. The song starts with a slow piano jazz like tune. Odell's voice comes in, "Yesterday was awful, you know well what I mean." Every verse repeats a similar line, that yesterday was something.

It is a bit more lively than "Constellations," but is similar in the way that it is a fairly calm and relaxing song. The music video and the album recording are quite different really. If you want a much calmer song, with slow piano, and a calm voice, then go to the music video. If you want it to be a little more lively, include some drums here and there, then listen to the studio recording.

Altogether, it is another great song. One of my personal favourites from the album, but I know many people may disagree with that and say that it's another song to go into the not as good pile.

"Daddy" was released along with the album on June 10th, 2016. Odell is trying something different again here. He is giving rock a go, using mainly electric guitar and drums.

The song starts with a quiet echo of an argument going on. The band then crashes in, the guitar and drums giving the song a fast paced tone. The music calms down as Odell's voice comes in. He sings about memories from when he was child, his father leaving town again. Tom Odell's father was a pilot, so a lot of inspiration came from that for this song.

After every verse, the band picks up and the chorus begins. Odell screams out "for youuuuu!" A screech of the guitar forces the song to go into instrumental for a few seconds, until it starts over with the verse.

Altogether, another really good song from the Wrong Crowd album. Again, it has had mixed reviews as Tom Odell is trying something very different and new for him here. Most Odell fans enjoy the song, mainly because of what he says and the back story to it.

"Here I Am" was released as a single on 20th May, 2016. Similar to others, he later released a music video on 19th September 2016. "Here I Am" is a song that suits Odell's style well.

The music video is good, but does not sync with the music as well as the other videos do. The other issue is that sadly Kevin Spacey is in the music video, but let's just pretend it's someone else.

The song starts with a loud piano melody, along with the sound of claps to keep the rhythm going. Odell's voice comes in. Soon the song kicks in, and the whole band joins in. The song as a whole feels quite big, really what Odell was looking for with this album.

Altogether, it's a really good song. Personally, not one of my favourites from the album, but I know that many Odell fans rate "Here I Am" as one of the top songs from the album.

"Somehow" was also released as a single on May 6th, 2016, along with a music video. This song is the last song on the album, and you wouldn't have been able to make it any more perfect. It's as though it is the song to end all songs. If you want to end anything, an album, a film, a TV show, your day, then "Somehow" ends it so well.

The music video also suits the song really well, set in the studio space, looking like a living room. The slow moving shots fit perfectly for the slow paced song.

The song opens with "Somehow" in the "Wrong Crowd" font. A calm and relaxing guitar comes in. The drums start with a comfortable beat, the piano lays down smooth chords and Odell's voice begins to sing. All is calm and relaxing. The first verse is sung through and the chorus begins, Odell's voice ever so slightly picks up and the band slow down. After every word they begin to pick up the pace every so slightly, hardly even recognisable.

The next verse begins, the video reveals a small orchestra next to Tom Odell, they begin to play. The strings giving it a harmonious sound. This verse being slightly louder than the last, with a few extra piano chords pushed in. The chorus begins, the band gets even louder, with a few other members singing along in the background. Then again, the verse repeats, different lines each time but still the same tune. Now the verse is even louder, more instruments included, the strings pick up, claps begin, and the band's feet begin to tap.

The band quickly move into an instrumental time. All instruments included, piano, drums, strings, claps, echoes, and Odell's voice. A sound that will force you to sway to. The shots in the video begin to move faster, but are all still synced to the song perfectly.

The rhythm keeps going as they repeated the verse and chorus one last time. Anyone who is not swaying, or tapping their feet/fingers by now must be dead. The strings have taken over, also with the drums. Now it all calms down as Odell finishes the chorus. A guitar rift beings as the song slowly fades out.

Altogether, this song is amazing and is so soothing. My personal favourite from the album. It is one of the most relaxing songs you can find, and has been put together so well. Tom Odell has said that this is the song that he is most proud of, and it's no surprise.

"She Don't Belong To Me" is an extra song which comes from the deluxe album, released on June 10th, 2016.

This song is very band related, and includes the drums a lot. It has a nice rhythm to it. It also is quite different to the rest of the album, not quite like "Silhouette" or "Daddy," but has some similarities to "Sparrow." With the use of the drums and the loud sound of Odell's voice, as he occasionally goes to a high pitch note. The song is very fast paced, the only thing missing is the piano.

Altogether, a very good song. Some fans say that this is one of their favourites. Personally I would say it is a great song, but you do need to be in the mood for it. It possibly falls into the pile of not as good songs.

"Mystery" is also an extra song from the deluxe album, released on June 10th, 2016. The song consists of drum, bass and piano. "Mystery" is a rather relaxing song. A lot of "Ooh's" make it very soothing, the sort of song to sway to.

Like most Tom Odell songs, this songs picks up as it goes along. However, it is not a really noticeable increase in sound. Odell's voice is very calm and never really changes his tone.

Altogether, a really nice song. It is not a particularly sad song either, it is just made to be relaxing. I would personally place it just under the middle section on the list of best songs from this album.

Entertainment was also an extra song on the deluxe album, released on June 10th, 2016. "Entertainment" is a rather deep, slow song. It is piano based, but it is played on a very low pitch.

The song starts with a piano melody, quite jazz like, maybe something you'd hear at a posh restaurant. The piano is fairly simple and short. Odell's voice comes in, he seems calm but also feels as though maybe something is welling up inside.

The chorus ends and we go back into the piano melody, this time with added sounds of a few men singing in their deepest voice. The verse and chorus repeat, and we finish with the piano melody.

Altogether, a great song with a lovely tune on the piano. If you like Odell's calm piano songs, then you should like this. This is one of my favourites from the album.

"I Thought I Knew What Love Was" is the last of the extra songs added, it was also released on the deluxe album on June 10th, 2016. The song consists of drums, guitar and piano.

"I Thought I Knew What Love Was" starts with the sound of Odell's voice, already accompanied by all the instruments used in the song. It's slow, and the drum and piano are what's making it move along. Verse two starts and the guitar makes a bigger appearance with a few rifts here and there.

It is a fairly calm song, after the first half of the song, it picks up and the band and Odell get slightly louder. Every now and then there is an added hint of a female background singing, just to echo Tom Odell's last words.

Altogether, this is quite a gritty song, and feels as though Odell may have wrote it when he was a bit angry with someone. I think it is a really good song, but again falls into the category of the song from the Wrong Crowd album that are not as good as the others.

The Wrong Crowd album is brilliant. It includes intensity and relaxation and it's not scared of trying something different. The album is put together really well, and each song leads into the next. Looking back to Odell's first album, some may argue this album is better, but some may disagree. It seems a tight one on which is better, but according to most reviews it seems that Wrong Crowd just about wins.

Thank you for reading.

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About the Creator

Sean Ramsden

Hi, I'm 19 and am currently studying at Ravensbourne in London. I'm a film director/writer/actor. I also love music and football. Favourite film, Titanic. Favourite artist & song, Another Love, Tom Odell. Favourite team, Crewe Alexandra

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