Moon Landing

Moon Landing

• Shrink-wrapped

For <em>Moon Landing</em>, <strong>James Blunt</strong> wanted to go back to sounding... like himself. Initial sessions saw him working with a real musician's producer - Martin Terefe, and these recordings have an undeniable freedom and celebration in their sound. ‘I was playing a lot of ukulele - mainly because it makes me look bigger,' says James. ‘We got on so well we could easily have done a whole album together and more.' But then James chose to strip it back further - he went back to LA, staying with his friend Carrie Fisher as he did for the first album (<em>Back To Bedlam</em> was her title suggestion, and the vocals for Goodbye My Lover were recorded in her bathroom). He also returned to producer Tom Rothrock, and to working with just the two of them in the studio, occasionally bringing in selected musicians from the <em>Back To Bedlam</em> sessions to fill in where James' own skills weren't enough. <br /><br />The result is a collection of songs that are raw, direct, and emotionally honest. There are songs of searing self-examination (Always Hate Me, The Only One), and others that sound like soundtracks for films not yet made, like Miss America - a song inspired by the tragic death of Whitney Houston, to explore the idea of how fame makes us feel like we know that artist personally. From unabashed declarations of love (the jaunty Postcards, the yearning Blue On Blue), to what must be one of the most tender break-up songs ever, the achingly lovely Face The Sun, <em>Moon Landing</em> is a thing of pure, understated beauty. And, as an introduction, and like all of James Blunt's best work, the melody for first single ‘Bonfire Heart' will quickly etch itself into your conscience, and you'll soon be humming along to the sweetly reflective verses, and anthemic chorus.