Passenger

Whispers II

(Black Crow)

Given that all profits from Whispers II will go to Unicef, it seems churlish to raise a couple of problems I have with Passenger, but here goes anyway: I often feel that the lush full-band-and-strings arrangements on his albums turn him into James Blunt for the Ed Sheeran generation, and I think that his voice sounds like it has been recorded at a speed a shade faster than the music that surrounds it.

In both cases it's good to report that Whispers II gets around my gripes by being more like the work of a solo singer-songwriter than last year's predecessor or 2012's All The Little Lights (which contained his global - and currently only - hit single, Let Her Go). Freed from the platinum-plated shackles of studio production, the instrumental backing here is subtle and restrained, allowing Michael Rosenberg's voice to be more in balance with his acoustic guitar picking; if Golden Leaves and Hearts On Fire were your highlights on Whispers, or you prefer the acoustic alternative versions he offers on the extra disc in the Deluxe Editions of his past two albums, then Whispers II will be right up your street.

That said, for all the uniqueness of his singing style, his songwriting remains very mainstream. Tuneful, yes; but lifted directly from the Bruce Springsteen/Bob Dylan/Paul Simon songbook.

Alan Morrison