With an incredibly uplifting folk-pop sound and a strong social networking presence, Robbie Boyd is an artist that has already built up quite a name for himself complete with the backing of his band. They’ve performed twice on ITV’s ‘This Morning’, toured Argentina, Italy, France, Germany and the UK, and later this month Robbie Boyd and his band will even be performing at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park along with The Feeling and McFly. Having previously released a couple of EPs under the name The Robbie Boyd Band, the focus is now placed firmly upon Robbie Boyd in name at least with the ‘Painted Sky’ EP, the band does however in practise remain absolutely central to the sound.
With first track ‘I Want You To Stay’ there is more than a hint of the exotic, a tropical feel about the music as bongo drums are pounded, a smattering of saxophone is provided, and the music takes you away to a far away place. There’s a huge amount of positively about the sound; this is feel good music, absolutely no doubt about it, and a summertime release for this EP is most definitely absolutely fitting.
The music transports us away from the ocean with second track ‘Before It Falls Apart’, although the feel good factor absolutely remains. There’s a great emphasis on the bass here, and it’s bass guitarist Simon Fitzpatrick that really seems to hold the track together with his simple yet supremely effective instrumental style. Instrumentally the track feels a lot more stripped back than first track ‘I Want You To Stay’, allowing Robbie Boyd’s vocal display to really blossom. Robbie Boyd really does have an excellent voice, and with the focus placed far more upon Boyd you really begin to appreciate just how impressive his vocal tone truly is. Robbie Boyd’s voice is smooth yet strong, soothing to listen to and also hugely appealing. The band certainly has a huge part to play in the ultimate success of this EP, Robbie Boyd’s vocal display is absolutely cracking though, and with vocals this good Boyd and his band will surely go a long way.
‘Oh Alaska’ is definitely the standout track of the EP. There’s a great beat throughout the song and sensational sparing utilisation of the saxophone; this is a track that feels absolutely huge, a piece of music that could easily propel Robbie Boyd and his band to an even higher level of success with a single release. Any of the tracks present on this EP would surely make a successful single in fact, and with final track ‘Red Queen’ Robbie Boyd and his band further showcase their talent as they close out the EP with another absolutely stunning offering of music. The tone changes with ‘Red Queen’, there’s an excellent tempo shift to the track as it starts out fairly mellow and cranks up to another level at around the one minute mark. This is a song that should definitely go down well when Robbie Boyd and his band perform with The Feeling later this month, with Robbie Boyd’s vocal display here sounding quite similar to The Feeling’s own Dan Gillespie Sells.
There’s a lot to appreciate about Robbie Boyd’s ‘Painted Sky’ EP. With the high energy, extreme feel good factor of the music, this is an EP that will not only make a great soundtrack to the summer, but also no doubt provide a warming feeling when you listen to it on those cold, dark winter nights, too. It’s a shame there’s only four tracks to the EP really as you definitely feel that you want more, Robbie Boyd certainly displays here that he and his band are to be watched out for in the future though, and it should provide for a hugely impressive listening experience when they come to releasing a full studio album of music.
UK based film graduate with a huge passion for music, sports and video games.
