James Bay was never going to reinvent the vaguely blues-rock wheel. After releasing three EPs and bagging this year’s Brits critics’ choice award, the 24-year-old from Hitchin has made a predictably safe album. That’s not to say Bay isn’t a capable singer-songwriter-guitarist, and one blessed with an expressively husky voice. Rather, Chaos and the Calm churns out pleasant but forgettable, festival-ready anthems. The recurring female choirs, well-worn chord progressions and chug-a-chug electric guitar recall a one-man interpretation of Coldplay or a less raw Damien Rice. It feels like bombast by numbers. What is most striking about the album’s adherence to themes of self-discovery, love and personal relationships is that it won’t really matter what critics think – people are likely to buy this debut in droves. From Best Fake Smile’s polite takedown of flighty friends to Craving’s message about longing for more excitement, Bay’s relatable pop-rock holds broad appeal for those, like him, who are figuring out the paths their lives may take.
