Newton Faulkner is back with his fourth studio album, called Studio Zoo. We have loved all of Newton’s previous albums and were very excited to get our hands on his latest album. This album has been made in what Newton dubbed as the ‘Studio Zoo’, with camera’s placed in his house and studio, to record the process of making the entire album, from start to finish. What was great about the process of the Studio Zoo, was that the fans got a chance to interact with Newton during the process of recording, by tweeting in live to give their thoughts on the tracks as they were being made and recorded and this record has very much been influenced by the fans.
The first few songs and the feel of the album as it opens up, is that it has a very melancholy, down-beat, mellow, with a stripped back sound to it, with the exception of Plastic Hearts, which is has a more of an up-tempo feel to it and it is a pretty catchy song. Treading Water is a beautiful song and a bit of a tear-jerker, this is going to sound amazing being played live, something which Newton is most comfortable and in his element doing. Indecisive is a lovely song and we think that it has an excellent sound, with its folksy-bluesy-tinged theme to it, with some lovely lyrics.
Losing Ground has a slightly up-beat edge and variants in the tune as it goes along – a lovely offering and a classic Newton song that everyone will love. Waiting on you is another favourite for us on the album. Orange Skies has a great catchy hook and the layering of vocals give an uplifting and almost gospel vibe to the song, take a listen to hear what we’re talking about.
This is another great album from Newton and its also impressive, to think the pressure that he must have gone through, to complete the record in a small time-scale, with the camera’s watching his every move! Although we would have loved to have heard a lot more up-beat songs on here, as most of the songs on the album have that very, very stripped back, slow element to them. The album definitely grows on you. We’ve played this album a few times now and we’re putting another spin on it, as the songs are slowly seeping their way into our brain, we feel ourselves singing along to the songs and they just sound better and better with each spin! We’re looking forward to catching Newton on tour soon, doing what he does best – singing live, with his acoustic guitar for company!
