Ed Sheeran – Equals

Ed Sheeran’s latest release is not bad, but it’s nothing fantastic either: he has lost a bit of his edge in Equals. While attempting to diversify production-wise, he still falls back on some of his more familiar tropes. Every track succeeds in doing what it needs to, but doesn’t exceed any expectations. Lyrically, he remains stagnant; with this record, he may have actually taken a step back. Now a family man, his songs revolve around his wife and daughter. While that’s not a bad thing, he doesn’t write these subject matters in any new or nuanced manner.

The album begins with Tides. It’s generic with text that embodies the difference between Sheeran’s life on his last trip to the studio and now. There’s a nice combination of harmony and reverb added to his voice in the stripped-back chorus. Shivers is Equal’s version of Shape of You, but without the production brilliance of its predecessor. A typical dance and nightclub track, it fails in comparison to Bad Habits, which is the record’s lead single. The latter is haunting yet upbeat, a complement to the addictive lyricism; it’s the perfect representation of the musical changes in the artist, while still maintaining recognisable factors of his writing.

Simple and very true to his signature acoustic sound, First Times has the typical effect of setting scenes with just a few simple words. The song echoes quiet recollections of memorable first moments between the musician and his wife. Heavily piano-driven, with the instrument carrying the rhythmic flow of the melody, The Joker and the Queen is full of card-betting conceits with an amazing instrumental interval. Sheeran dedicates Visiting Hours to his late close friend, Michael Gudinski; it’s a ballad that muses on the prospect of Gudinski meeting Sheeran’s daughter as representative of time passing by. The mix of piano and choir reverberates through the speaker like a hymn from a church.

Be Right Now follows similar beat patterns and instrumental composition to Surrender by Walk the Moon. It’s like 70s/80s rock with a little bit of modern indie. All that mixed with Sheeran’s chosen delivery takes the listener to an endless galaxy – a soundscape that echoes through space and opens up to infinite possibilities. A very endearing closing number, it welcomes Sheeran to a whole new life and side of music he is yet to explore.

Mae Trumata

Equals is released on 29^th October 2021. For further information or to order the album visit Ed Sheeran’s website here.

Watch the video for the single Shivers here: