[6/10]
It seems as though it would be difficult for any hardcore Ed Sheeran fan not to mildly despair at his newest single ‘Sing’. Sheeran has certainly pushed the boat out with this one and has completely re-sculpted his sound to the point where he is almost unrecognisable. That being said, ‘Sing’ is not a bad track at all; just something that has come as a surprise. Sheeran has substituted the melancholia, acoustic twang and poignant lyrics for an upbeat, Justin Timberlake-esque electric jam. The tempo reflects his old style like in ‘You Need Me Man I Don’t Need You’, so all is not lost, and his trademark fearless rapping is also loud and clear. ‘Sing’ has a foot-tap-inducing guitar lead, a funky beat, jazzy chords and is led by Sheeran’s well controlled falsetto.
Having been produced by Pharrell, it’s not hard to immediately pinpoint his influence. The track seems detached from Sheeran as an artist but he does well to blend his distinguishable style with the busyness of Pharrell’s contribution. The subject of the track is far from what we are used to hearing from Sheeran and has quite a coquettish tone rather than the soft, romantic ballads he tends to be identified with. We can then see ‘Sing’ as a not-so-subtle attempt from Sheeran to break out of this bracket and show that he has a cheekier side to his music and can have fun with putting together catchy tracks which don’t always have to have some kind of inherent poetic significance. Despite being catchy, buoyant and light-hearted, doubt can be placed on whether this track will be a stand-out one in Sheeran’s career, but for the time being; ‘Sing’ is an animated, summery anthem that will most likely be making appearances everywhere over the summer.
Gabriela Quattromini
