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9 years after his debut solo album, Nathan Sykes is able to reintroduce himself — this time, with no apologies and no hesitation. ‘Ultraviolet’, his long-awaited second studio album, out TODAY, marks a return not simply to music, however to himself.
“With such a protracted interval between solo albums, and a lot private progress throughout that point, my sound has naturally matured, with a quiet confidence threaded all through that may even be felt inside the vocal supply and manufacturing of every monitor,” Sykes says reflecting on the near-decade between information. His 2016 debut, ‘Unfinished Enterprise’, was polished, poised, and promising — the sound of a former boy-band star discovering his footing. However ‘Ultraviolet’ is one thing else solely: a visceral, confessional document that feels just like the diary of a person who’s discovered to like his scars.
Work on the album started again some years, earlier than life took some surprising turns. The Needed’s reunion, Tom Parker’s heartbreaking sickness and passing, and the whiplash of fame and grief left Sykes reassessing all the things — together with his voice. “The document is my most private and genuine work up to now,” he says. “It explores components of my life that I beforehand haven’t recognized find out how to faucet into, starting from moments the place I’m on the surface wanting in, to diving into what it’s like to really love and really feel love for the primary time.”
The result’s ‘Ultraviolet’ — a twelve-track journey by way of heartbreak, hope, and therapeutic. From the luxurious, cinematic opener ‘U.V.’ to the slow-burn R&B of ‘Dive’, the document pulses with a confidence that feels earned. ‘Butterflies’ shimmers with the glint of early-2000s pop, whereas ‘Pores and skin’ digs deep into vulnerability and self-acceptance. Each music is co-written by Sykes, showcasing an artist who’s taken full artistic management.
Sonically, the document blends shiny pop with soulful undertones — suppose Sam Smith’s emotional candour meets the smooth manufacturing of George Ezra and Tom Grennan. Sykes teamed up with producer Tobie Tripp, in addition to writers David Sneddon (Lana Del Rey, Lewis Capaldi), Theo Hutchcraft (Calvin Harris, Måneskin), and Anu Pillai (Lewis Capaldi, Declan J Donovan), to craft a sound that’s fashionable however unmistakably his personal. Combined by Steve Fitzmaurice (Sam Smith), the album glows with heat, texture, and a distinctly British polish.
Standouts like ‘Items of Me’ and ‘Guess I Was Proper’ ship radio-ready hooks wrapped in emotional honesty. In the meantime, nearer ‘Time To Say Goodbye’ — a fragile piano ballad — appears like Sykes’ most susceptible second but.
There’s a maturity in Sykes’ tone now — a quiet assurance that replaces the stressed power of his twenties. The place ‘Unfinished Enterprise’ was a promise, ‘Ultraviolet’ is fulfilment. It’s not about proving himself anymore; it’s about being himself.
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