Ed Cosens – Fortunes Favour (Distiller Music) 
Release Date: Out Now
Erstwhile member of Reverend and
the Makers Ed Cosens has unleashed this solo album, ‘Fortunes Favour’, on the
world and it really is a masterpiece in song writing. The album opens up with ‘Running
on Empty’, a triumphant and swaggering introduction with all the bombast of
Oasis in their latter-day prime but with style tips from Richard Hawley as the
bass bubbles and the piano notes lend themselves to Cosens’ gorgeous crooning
vocals. ‘If’ continues the ambitious
theme with a cinematic arrangement that would work well with a driving scene in
a film set in the mountains of Italy and two impossibly beautiful lead actors.
The trio of strong opening songs is completed by the slower and more balladeering
track ‘The River’ which is full of regret and endings set to the kind of tune
that you know you’ll be singing along to with tears running down your cheeks someday.
There is a timeless quality to
this album which will give it universal appeal, a feature supported by ‘Last to
Know’ which has its feet firmly rooted in song writing of the likes of Buddy
Holly or Gerry & the Pacemakers – sorrow and beauty partnered in beautiful
matrimony. Title track ‘Fortunes Favour’ has a more Arctic Monkeys vibe to it
but mixed with a Del Amitri vibe as the organ stabs and guitar twangs make for a
sexy little number. ‘Madeleine’ goes full film noir on our collective asses
before ‘Lovers Blues’ brings things into a more upbeat area with a tale of
heartbreak that is all too familiar to anyone who’s love has gone unrequited.
Recent single ‘On the Run’
sparkles as a story-telling tour-de-force before ‘The Pantomime’ goes lo-fi
with a tik-tok processed beat and Cosens’ midnight thoughts flowing out through
the dead of night. The album comes to a close with ‘Come On In’, the most warming
song that feels like the musical version of the welcome I got when I moved to
Sheffield back in the day even if the lyrics are a little more downbeat. Ed
Cosens has a real knack for song writing and story telling as well as having
the kind of voice I could listen to all day and night so for those reasons
alone you should certainly get your hands on this album – I suspect it will
sound particularly great on vinyl but I haven’t heard it so don’t quote me on
that.