Over the last few years, Sheeran has been developing her craft as a solo performer. Occasional CD-R and download releases, along with regular live performance have shown her skills as a songwriter and a performer to be constantly increasing. Therefore it comes as no surprise to me that her debut album is absolute perfection. Every time I think that it has reached a peak, I am greeted with an equally good, if not better, song immediately afterwards.
As Lust of Pig & The Fresh Blood has been plagued with production hiccups and is now appearing months later than expected, to finally hear this album after watching it slowly form on the stage and through Sheeran's Pledge Music campaign is a treat indeed. It is an expansive, layered and finely crafted work; each of the songs becoming its own fairy tale world. Sheeran utilises a range of instruments to create ever-changing backdrops for her songs. From ukulele to singing saw all the way through to glass-like electronics, she has made a collection of music that is continually exciting and each listen reveals another facet of her talents. On "Sally Please Don’t Go," Sheeran already uses enough musical ideas that would make an interesting album let alone a single song and she manages to keeps up this level of creativity for the length of Lust of Pig & The Fresh Blood.
"The Fresh Blood" forms a focal point in the album, Sheeran's vocals taking on their most lyrical and magical form yet: "Today I saw the world/Through a hole in the floor." The eerie implications of the words are matched by a haunting melody on an acoustic guitar that slowly gets enveloped by gurgling haze of electronics and drums. All the while, Sheeran seems to stand poised in the center of this seething music, her voice coming through clearly despite its gentleness. Elsewhere, "It's Been a Long Day" takes seemingly benign lyrics but casts them in a bewitching and slightly sinister light; Sheeran invites you to rest in her arms but her inflection suggests that you might never be released.
Some familiar names appear throughout Lust of Pig & The Fresh Blood, many of whom are related to Fovea Hex (of which Sheeran has been a staple part since their first EP). Clodagh Simonds lends her voice to "An Apple for You" and strings appear courtesy of Cora Venus Lunny and Kate Ellis, rounding out the music beautifully. However, at no point does Sheeran's music sound like just an offshoot of Fovea Hex. Evidently her own ideas have been brewing for some time (a song called "I'm Sorry Son" first appeared on one of Sheeran's Sketches CD-Rs before becoming "Walk Out With Me" here) and the guests appear purely on Sheeran's terms. They add to the music but never overpower the songs with their own styles.
From all that I have heard of Sheeran prior to this, I had a strong inkling that she had a stormer of an album in her somewhere but for it to arrive fully formed so early in her career is a pleasant surprise. With any luck, this is only the start of a large back catalog. I imagine a lot of people will pick this up via the Fovea Hex connection but I honestly feel that Sheeran has fostered her own talents to the point where she deserves all the recognition for herself.
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