Well… In the year 2015 who would have thought there was an artist capable of smashing records via physical and download sales? Adele is the answer, and 25 is already proving to be one of the biggest selling albums of all time. One fact: 25 has easily broken the first week sales records of the UK and USA. Or how about this: as of today (27/11/2015), 25 has reached the top of the iTunes charts in 110 of the 119 countries that the Apple company operates in. It sold 900,000 copies on iTunes on the first day alone, smashing previous record holder Beyonce. How did this happen? How has Adele achieved almost worldwide domination? Partly, via a successful non-leakage campaign, and the withholding of the record from streaming services. But, fame and fortune has come about for a variety of other reasons. Because she is Everywoman, someone you feel you could be hanging out with. Someone who likes a drink, a chat, and comes across as salt of the earth. Someone who has a great voice. Someone who has made some fine records. Someone who writes and sings naturally about love and relationships. Someone who has next-to-no pretension.

 
But, come on people! This is an over reaction. 25 has its moments, but it is also disappointing, because too many songs here are about heartbreak and the foibles of love, in one form or other. Adele practically promised that she would not do this… ‘I am never writing a breakup record again. I’m done with being a bitter witch’, she recently said. Well, bitter and witch may not be the right words, but liar is. I’m half-joking, but this is what Adele does, and what people want, it seems. Professional writers (all her songs are co-written with professional writers) are often guilty of contrivance, and providing what they think the people want, rather than participating in a purely artistic endeavour. Unlike, say Joni Mitchell, someone perfectly capable of writing about love and it’s heartbreaks, but also about many other things, and with a good deal more poetic endeavour. Adele and her team shy away from that, and almost certainly for the twin reasons that they are playing to her strengths, and in the process hearing those cash registers go into overdrive. And so, the sentiments, sometimes brilliantly expressed, are often cliqued and platitudinous.
 
Just recently, Adele asked "will my fans be disappointed in me that I can't fix their broken hearts with a song that is brokenhearted," before going on to say that she couldn't write a sad record unless she was actually sad… I guess it all depends on your definition of sad, as 25 overwhelmingly (until the very end) sounds sad, remorseful and mournful. Whilst having a baby and what looks a currently steady relationship could have been a recipe for a new kind of song, as promised, instead it's more of the same; from the mournful tale of a failed relationship on album opener, and mega selling single, 'Hello', through to devastating heartbreak on 'Love in The Dark', it becomes a bit of a chore, big weight, to sit through the album in one listening…
 
But, of course, it is the story and personality behind it that has captivated millions, mainly female fans, who don't as a rule do pretension, or arty-fartyness. Many just want something that articulates their honest-to-goodness thoughts, however banal, however repetitive, however cheesy to others. But surely, there can't be many who will not tire of much of this album quickly, for the simple reason that the majority of the material here is average, but saved somewhat by Adele herself, and that voice, which interestingly (and successfully) is rawer, more naturalistic, and therefore sounds all the better for it, like a live performance.
 
There are exceptions; second track 'Send My Love (To Your New Lover)', despite it once again being about a past relationship, is a decent stab at trying something a bit different; the song alternating between simple acoustic and percussive rhythms and a perky r'n'b, backing vocal-rich chorus, the antithesis of the uber-balladry of 'Hello' on this occasion, while 'I Miss You' benefits from a more experimental r’n’b fusion, with deep organ chords providing the atmosphere, and discombobulated voices adding mystery. But for most of the rest of the record, until the last two tracks, we get a succession of piano-based downpour songs, full of lyrical cliches ('I'm sorry for breaking your heart', 'I'll be the shelter that won't let the rain come through', 'It feels like we're oceans apart', et al), lots of wailing (admittedly, no one wails quite like Adele). There are occasional glimpses of light, for instance the more poetic lyricism of 'When We Were Young' and the minimalist parts of 'River Lea', where Adele just sing-talks, rather than opening up the throttle. And 'Million Years Ago' could have been a good song if it wasn't such a rip off of Charles Aznavour's/Dusty Springfield's 'Yesterday When I Was Young'…
 
Two of the best though are saved for last. 'All I Ask' has an old school lightness that is inviting. With just piano for accompaniment, Adele’s voice is raw, and dynamic; the voice a little croaky, you can visualise the fighting back of the tears as she delivers this outstanding performance. And then there’s the final track 'Sweetest Devotion' – about actually being happy and in love for once – musically, the opposite to Hello’s overwrought emotionalism; this time we get a more fired up soul tune with a real band feel behind it, and a joie-de-vivre, almost wholly lacking elsewhere.
 
It should be noted that Adele had thoughts of leaving the music industry after the thirty million selling 21. She then started a family, and found it difficult to get back into writing, suffering from writer’s block. There were several aborted attempts at writing and recording, and many songs about motherhood were reportedly binned. There seems to be a reluctance to face up to the fact that she has now entered a further maturing age (motherhood often derails the best intentions), where perhaps the old fire to come up with the goods has been a struggle to light. That reluctance is borne out by much of the mediocrity of the content, and this disconnect between the singer and the person (in real life she is very funny and seems like a hoot to be around). Still, when you’re dominating the world like she is doing, and artistic expression is measured in units sold, there can’t really be anything to fix. Can there?
Jeff Hemmings
 

 
Website: adele.com