Ashley Thieme
Off the back of his recent Netflix documentary, How I’m Feeling Now, Grammy nominated musician and self-proclaimed Tik-Tok star, Lewis Capaldi, has graced us with his second album, Broken By Desire To Be Heavenly Sent.
How Lewis Capaldi is feeling now
It’s hard to class Lewis Capaldi as anything short of a lyrical genius after listening to this new release. The album reached number one on the Official Albums Chart a week after its release on 19th May. He manages to capture heartbreak, guilt, loss, and his feeling of imposter syndrome all within 12 tracks. And all the while his powerful vocals convey the raw emotions he is writing about.
In his Netflix documentary, ‘How I’m Feeling Now’, Capaldi discussed his Tourette’s Syndrome diagnosis in depth, noting how it had affected his personal life along with his live performances.
“Putting you in a trance with his raspy voice and gut-wrenching lyrics”
Taking this into consideration, an inherent theme throughout this new album is self-actualisation. It’s entirely possible that his diagnosis is what makes this album personal and a letter to the listeners who have watched the documentary. The album reassures listeners that he is doing better which coincides with his conversation with The Independent where he discusses a young fan saying: “I want kids like Leo to know that Tourette’s doesn’t have to get in your way”. He has definitely demonstrated that with this incredible album.
Overview of the second album from Capaldi
The album begins by placing the listener in a position of familiarity as the first three tracks from the album. Forget Me, Pointless, and Wish You The Best have previously been released as singles and all charted at number one, so the success of the album does not come as surprise.
Forget Me is one of Capaldi’s more up-tempo songs and whilst this is a standout track on the album it is not his specialty. We hear how the other two singles Pointless and Wish You The Best how Capaldi can draw you in. He puts the listener in a trance with his raspy voice and gut-wrenching lyrics and this is what sets him apart.
Throughout his discography, Capaldi makes references to Heaven and Hell and this becomes apparent in Heavenly State Of Mind, another up-beat track that references angels and the devil. Haven’t You Ever Been In Love Before serves the purpose of demonstrating Capaldi’s reluctance to pursue a path he would later regret: “I just can’t live with regret, I’d rather dive off the deep end”. With this momentous proclamation, it helps to build the track into something much grander than listeners have been accustomed to.
“I spend all of my time, feeling like I’m falling behind”
Another reference to Hell leads us to Love the Hell Out Of You, which has to be an honourable mention as it is a slow song led by a piano but feels like a matured version of a song from his debut album, Someone You Loved. Simpler numbers include Burning and Any Kind Of Life, but another stand out track is How This Ends. This song feels like the final track as it is an incredibly reminiscent song with the lyrics, “If I had the heart to start it again, I’d stamp out the sparks in my own self-defence”.
Is Calpaldi ‘The Pretender’?
I would argue that The Pretender is the most personal and raw song on the album. It lets us into the darkest parts of Capaldi’s mind and tells how he is of the opinion that he is “designed to deceive”. This is an example of why sometimes his music can often seem so distant from his online persona, which is hilarious whilst being self-deprecating.
The self-deprecation does however emerge as we hear, “I’ll be anybody but me” and “I spend all of my time, feeling like I’m falling behind” and it is understood that this is turned into humour for his online audience. It’s not something I think Beyoncé could do but it works for him.
‘Leave me slowly’
Leave Me Slowly is reminiscent of an 80s Prince song and is an absolute classic in the making. The 80s synth-style is absolutely a shock to the listener, but it is such a refreshing song in an album that is filled with modern pop ballads.
“The debut album was a force to be reckoned with”
This one is my personal favourite on the album as it is clear from the rest of the album that Capaldi knows his style and is reluctant to stray from this, but he is willing to experiment on his records as his music matures.
‘How I’m feeling now’
This song perfectly sums up the documentary, it is exactly what we see on screen; his struggles and triumphs whilst figuring out his Tourettes diagnosis and how to navigate this whilst touring. A familiar line rings out, “so here’s to my beautiful life, that seems to leave me so unsatisfied” and it comes to light that the new album is incredibly reminiscent of Capaldi’s debut album Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent. But this is by no means a bad thing. The debut album was a force to be reckoned with and he has managed to out-do himself.
Throughout the album, the lyrics demonstrate growth and maturity within his craft of songwriting but also within himself as he becomes self-aware in the albums final track and says: “thought I’d be happier somehow, if you were wondering how I’m feeling now”.
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Featured image courtesy of Nathan Fertig on Unsplash. No changes were made to this image. Image license can be found .
