Adele’s '25' is Great. Now, She Needs To Make a Real Dance Song
In this time of Adele-mania — she’s back, she’s smashing records, she’s performing live again, she’s upending pop culture! — let’s take a moment to appreciate the fact that the most popular recording artist of this decade also happens to be really, really good.
Adele makes easy-to-like pop music that is immensely, overwhelmingly popular, but also expertly written, masterfully performed and deeply affecting. Her crowd-pleasing aesthetic can sometimes lead music snobs to dismiss her song craft, but the U.K. singer has separated herself from the pack of post-Winehouse crooners by pairing her all-powerful voice with intricately arranged melodies and turns of phrase that cut to the core. A line like “Never mind, I’ll find someone like you” can be designed for millions while immediately recalling a moment in time for an individual listener; a song like “Rolling in the Deep” can nod to dozens of soul-pop touchstones while sounding distinctly of this day and age. This is Adele’s gift, and to overlook her virtuosity would be to shrug off what has made her a critical and commercial titan.
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