“Here’s a simple song, it won’t stop the rain from coming down or your heart from breaking.” If ever an opening line summed up an album and the artist, it is that opener from Mike Rosenberg’s ninth album as Passenger. The Boy Who Cried Wolf was another of those surprise releases that big acts are increasingly using, released with just 48 hours notice and only shortly after Rosenberg served notice that he would be taking a break from touring for the foreseeable future. At first, the album title brought hope to Passenger fans that it was merely a false alarm but further statements have confirmed that this is indeed the last sight and sound of Passenger for a while as they take a well-earned break. His parting gift to us is a short album of beautiful and low-key simple songs.
The album is comprised of ten tracks, many of which are familiar to those who have seen Passenger play live recently. The first instrument heard on ‘Simple Song’ is a banjo, and from there onwards we are clearly in familiar territory. It is as cosy and welcoming as a favourite armchair, which could describe the mood of the whole album. No new ground is broken, but the background behind this release was never going to produce any avant-garde experimental jazz sounds. It is aimed squarely at his fanbase and feels like a gift that they will be delighted with. Without much embellishment, (indeed many hearken back to Rosenberg’s street busking days as they comprise just his voice and an acoustic guitar), it delivers blissful moments that are destined to be the soundtrack to road trips and sunsets across the sea. The album itself seems to shift from happy to sad from song to song, never quite raising the pulse above a state of mellowness that lays over it all. Rosenberg can produce beautiful melodies in his sleep, and the title track is a perfect example as he plays with the old fairy tale singing: “I am the shepherd’s only son and I know what a joke I’ve become…I saw that old wolf from tale to tooth and I know that he’s hungry” to an irresistible tune. ‘And I Love Her’ is particularly beautiful, a paean to his lover that will surely bring a tear to the most hardened of hearts: “she’s a thousand miles from here, but she’s everywhere I go, ‘cos I love her” perhaps hinting at why it was time for Passenger to take a break after close to five years of non-stop touring.
An album like this is almost above reviews or opinions from the music media. It is clearly a present for his fans first and foremost, and a perfect accompaniment to his recent cover album Sunday Night Sessions. The songwriting is as exceptional as we have come to expect, and if it lacks some of the big pop hooks from previous albums then that is more than compensated with a collection of songs that will bring a beatific smile as it warms the heart. As this chapter of Passenger’s journey ends, fans will be left hoping that these beautifully constructed folk tales of the heart are meant as an au revoir rather than a goodbye.
Jamie MacMillan