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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A credible follow-up, 14 Jun 2005
After the phenomenal success of his debut album, "Gotta Get Thru This", Daniel Bedingfield must have been incredibly hard-pushed to produce a sequel. Coupled with the fact that Daniel himself was involved in a horrific car accident in 2003, this album did well to merely credit a release in the UK. Indeed, I was apprehensive as to whether he would be up to creating more of his fantastically unique music after he so narrowly escaped with his life, but I'm delighted to say that "Second First Impression", though it doesn't quite live up to the outrageously high standard of "Gotta Get Thru This", did not disappoint me at all.Gone are the garage-pop tracks of Bedingfield's debut, replaced by altogether rockier songs that really show how versatile this man is. The ability to perform in a huge variety of genres is exactly what I admire most about Bedingfield; this album also includes some dance-inspired tracks reminiscent of "Gotta Get Thru This", as well as a few beautiful ballads. The former class is represented by the two opening tracks, "Growing up" and "Complicated", both of which are very infectious and show the incredible range of Bedingfield's voice. "Growing up" seems to be the "Blown it again" of this album, with its funk rhythm emphasised curiously by a closed snare drum at certain points, and Bedingfield's trademark vocal overdubs in octaves in the chorus. "Complicated" is also interesting as it is slightly world-orientated and again displays how comfortable Bedingfield is singing so many different styles of music. Undoubtedly, though, the standout upbeat track on this album is the ingenious "The way". Bedingfield instantly grabs the listener by human beatboxing as only he can in the highly syncopated introduction, and the song gradually evolves from a dance/pop first verse into a full out rock chorus, during which Bedingfield slides his voice up to the high notes to further highlight the rock inspiration. The electric guitar in the instrumental leading on to the second verse is wonderfully haunting, and the middle eight is simply mind-blowing, showcasing Bedingfield's vocals to their absolute best. The first single to be taken from this album, "Nothing hurts like love", is a good representation of the mid-tempo tracks included here. The keyboards used on this song sound pleasantly dreamy, as do those on "All your attention", a lovely track where the lyrics suggest that Bedingfield can be innocent and vulnerable just like the rest of us. "Wrap my words around you", Bedingfield's next choice of single, also follows this sensitive lead; its quiet verses painted with a soft electric piano are very pleasant to listen to, building inevitably to a powerful chorus that again shows exactly how strong Bedingfield's vocals are. The remaining mid-tempo numbers are "Show me the real you", from which the album's title "Second First Impression" stems from, and "Holiness", an inspiring track in which Bedingfield sings of opening his arms to the world and staying positive following his accident. There are two tracks on "Second First Impression" that sound very different from their fellows. The first is the beautiful "Sorry", a tribute to Bedingfield's sister Natasha. This song must have been incredibly hard for Bedingfield to write; Bedingfield reveals all about his ADD trauma, sounding ashamed of himself and apologising in vain throughout the song: "I wanna say I'm sorry but I know I'll do it again... I don't wanna hurt you anymore." The piano and strings used in this stunning track really compliment the sensitive nature of the song, and proves that his ADD doesn't hold Bedingfield back in the slightest - this is the ultimate pinnacle track of this album. The second song is the altogether strange "All the little children". Bedingfield shows his angrier side on this track, and he is sparsely accompanied by a string quartet and piano chords, which surround the track with a mysterious aura. This song is very short, and as a result it is almost like a protest; this track definitely gives the listener much to think about. As in Bedingfield's debut album, there are acoustic tracks at the end of "Second First Impression", which I feel are great songs to conclude the album. "Draw you" is very pleasant, where the guitar is appropriately quiet to partner Bedingfield's soft vocals, while "A kiss without commitment" almost resembles a busker's song as the vocal harmonies are simple yet effective. Bedingfield actually name checks the woman in question in the chorus of this song, which is quite unusual today and so adds interest for the listener. One final track is the hidden "I'm not dead", which can be found a few minutes into "A kiss without commitment". This unquestionably relates to Bedingfield's accident, and its very rocky style suggests that he is angry but positive about how he shall have to continue with his life. The electric guitar "scream" in the opening stages of this track arguably represent the crash itself, and I was shocked to hear Bedingfield shouting in a rough, rocky voice at the end, as though in protest like in "All the little children". This album is a huge step forward for Daniel Bedingfield, and many of its songs have allowed him time to reflect on how very different his world could have been today. Altogether this is an incredibly inspiring album, which the ultimate multi-genre music fan will worship for a long time to come.
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~ Daniel Bedingfield
~ Natasha Bedingfield
~ Daniel Bedingfield
~ Natasha Bedingfield
~ Darius
