Tom Odell is back with the new single Numb and it doesn’t sound like him at all…
In 2013, when Tom Odell released his debut album Long Way Down, I thought: “I just discovered the best singer of our times”. It was hard for me to find another incredibly emotional and talented artist. Since then, I have listened to new albums and saw him live three times.
Tom Odell can convey feelings in a magical and emotional way. He is not only a talented singer but also a pianist. As always, I was waiting impatiently to hear the new single.
But Numb is not Tom Odell. Not the one who is painfully honest and can turn thoughts into beautiful words. Odell has often admitted recently that his once disliked pop is now one of the genres he enjoys exploring.
And that’s what Numb is like, more dark pop than the alternative, with a hint of electronics.
The lyrics of this song just seem lazy, as if written very casually. Odell is not the brilliant writer as usual, but a typical pop artist who overuses the word, ‘Babe’. The song itself is quite emotional, but because the lyrics keep repeating from the very first lines and don’t go further into the story, it loses its force.
All that said, Numb isn’t a bad song. If I heard it on the radio and didn’t know who the performer is, I would consider it a pretty good one. However, knowing who is singing it, I think that he can do much better.
Odell announced that he will be releasing singles from a new album every Friday next following weeks, so hopefully, other songs will be more complex, even though I predict more pop experimentations.
I believe Tom will come back to his alternative roots at some point and we’ll get a lot more great music from him, but at the moment Numb is certainly not part of it.
Rating: 6/10
By Lilia Hadj Said
Feature Image Credit: Sony Music Entertainment