I Sincerely Apologise For All The Trouble I've Caused

This is tragically shortsighted for one simple reason - David Ford has guts. This album far surpasses anything I think such artists could ever achieve by wearing it's heart on its sleeve for every one of the 45 or so minutes. David Ford takes you on a whirlwind tour of his emotions and musings and leaves you feeling thoroughly satisfied.

This is a rare treasure to find these days, where so much emphasis is placed on style and fashion and so little time focused on true songwriting genius. If you are even thinking twice about buying this album, please please don't...Mr Ford really will make it your time.

His self-confessed bastard's lament 'State Of The Union' is a breathtaking rant about the government, love, religion and life in general, that is both musically and lyrically very strong; ‘Sweet dreams all met with derision / This train it was armed for collision‘. On the other side, ‘Cheer Up (You Miserable Fuck) is a slightly tongue in cheek yet touching song to himself, complete with anthemic, lighter-waving chorus. The closer ‘Laughing Aloud’ is very different again; to all intents and purposes its quite a bitter little song, but at over eight minutes long it’s actually quite an epic! And if the string ensemble at the chorus doesn’t melt your heart then it must be made of stone.

What stands David Ford apart from all the other singer/songwriters out there are his talents for writing witty and often darkly comic lyrics, for crafting wonderfully singable melodies and undoubtedly his incredible voice. He has the power to sound gentle and melancholy (like on the fragile 'A Long Time Ago'), then strong and defiant ('State Of The Union') while always capturing the emotion of the song.

His musical style, like all innovative artist's work, is hard to pigeonhole. His songs are defiantly led by their strong melodies and intelligent lyrics, whilst the instrumentation often consists of acoustic guitar, piano, bass and drums, with occasional guest appearance from a cello or saxophone. There is also a 'folky' tinge to his sound, but at heart, David Ford just wants to write songs that mean something. Which he does very well indeed.

The album opens with the rousing "I Don't Care What You Call Me" - a statement of defiance which perfectly answers his critics who blame him for the split of his previous group, easyworld. Another defiant statement follows with the stirring 'protest song' debut single, "State Of The Union". The live performance which showcases David's multi-instrumental talents has attracted the attentions of many established artists, including Keane and Fran Healy of Travis.

There really is no mould for David's music - he seems equally comfortable on guitar and piano, as well as a plethora of other instruments (the album was recorded entirely at home by himself) - yet with his unique voice he immediately manages to create an infectious sound which is purely 'David Ford'. Although the album features its heart wrenching melancholic moments - the beautiful "What Would You Have Me Do?", and "A Long Time Ago" - David easily quashes the 'depressed singer-songwriter' tag with the ecstatic "Laughing Aloud", and diminishes this criticism with just the title of "Cheer Up (You Miserable F***)". He's even managed to write the perfect radio song in "Katie".

It's inevitable that Ford will be pigeon-holed with other singer-songwriters such as James Blunt and Damien Rice by the media. However, if there is any justice in the world, Ford will transcend these artists and stand out in a genre he has crafted himself. There's really no need to apologise David.