Call Upon The Author

When you think Aiden Grimshaw X Factor comes to mind, a show which is excessively ‘poppy’ in nature. So it’s only natural to assume that Grimshaw will follow the same format that the show and other contestants have.

They’ve all become predictable, Leona Lewis sticks to her ballads, Alexandra Burke has forsaken the soulful path in favour of pop and Olly Murs has left behind the role of cheeky chappy on the X Factor to become the cheeky chappy of the music industry.

Yet, Grimshaw has changed that. Misty Eye is not what you would expect from him, it’s full of almost dance tracks, drenched in synths and sewn together with a few hooks here and there.

He has ignored the public’s perception of himself and had become a better artist than he was on the X Factor.

The title track is a particular standout; it slows the pace of the album down slightly. It has an unassuming start, seeming a little bit average but then it really gets going with a few piano chords here and there mixed with a slow steady beat and Grimshaw’s brooding vocals really top it off.

It’s a song that marks his growth in the music world. Sure he’s only really just starting out, but he’s starting out pretty good.

Is This Love, his debut single, is a lively track that demonstrates his vocal range; the chorus is the sort that will get stuck in your head and actually this song is arguably the best on the album. It really is astonishing how high his voice can go. It’s also nice that the synths actually suit the song, there are so many cases of people just throwing them in because they think it sounds cool, thankfully this isn’t one of them.

With Misty Eye there’s a sense that Grimshaw has thought long and hard about which direction he wants to take his career in and his first attempt is a good one. We shall see how things go for him when his debut album is released on 20 August.