New Zealand Net Radio plays a song from our irregularly updated #albumoftheweek every hour from 9am to 12pm. Listen in @tunein at http://tun.in/sfAtE
Ed Sheeran has followed in Taylor Swift’s shoes in turning to Aaron Dessner to help with a simpler sound, a return to his singer-songwriter roots for this album. Fewer songwriting collaborators and deeply personal lyrics about loss (two friends passed away over the last year) and the challenge of his wife’s cancer diagnosis make this a strong heartfelt album. Written over an astonishingly short period this is evidence that Sheeran’s creativity is as strong as ever. Alex Petridis of The Guardian even called it “easily his best album ever” in an excellent review. We look forward to investigating it this week.