Olly Murs - In Case You Didn't Know Review
He’s Olly. From Essex. And he’s ok. And his album’s alright. Oh, and he’ll be more successful than Joe McElderry. Of Jobseekers Allowance fame.
rating: 3
Hello. My name is Olly and Im from Essex. I was in the sixth series of X Factor only finishing second behind Joe McElderry. Yknow, of Popstar to Operastar fame. He won that AND X Factor so this is a guy that knows how to win a popularity contest. Well if that hasnt peaked your interest, nothing will. Olly Murs spent ten whole weeks ramming his repetitive dance moves and Essex-ness down our throats in late 2009. Some called him brave. Some called him stupid. Some called him an unbearable pox on society. But give him some credit. There he was harping on about Essex in his monotonous mockney drone long before that TOWIE bunch came along and introduced us to abbreviated words, fancy vaginas and spray tan. However, with it being the advent of, well, advent, Im in a giving mood, so Im giving Olly (and Essex) a chance. In the shape of a review of In Case You Didnt Know. The follow up to double platinum selling debut album, Olly Murs (in case we didnt know). If you managed to get through the summer without hearing the lead single from ICYDK, youve done well. Heart Skips a Beat was the ska flecked extravaganza that flooded the airwaves, shot straight to the top of the singles charts, and shifted over 110,000 copies in its first week of release. Which is no mean feat by anyones standards. And I cant let it pass without mentioning that Olly is SO Essex that he even has Southend rap duo Rizzle Kicks featuring on this track. Murs is more Essex than velour tracksuits on Loughton High Street. Its difficult not to like this track though, despite every sinew in my body telling me not to. Even my hairdresser told me he liked it, and hes a right miserable bastard. It has the right influences, reputable writers (Samuel Preston of Ordinary Boys fame, among others) and if the rest of the album follows a similar pattern, then this 44 minutes of listening is not going to be half as gruelling as I imagined it to be. And by and large it does. Regardless of whether Murs is just another act off the X Factor conveyor belt, he clearly knows where he wants to take his music, and maximises his soulful voice by ensuring the music on his tracks is heavily reggae and ska inspired. Sure hes no Bob Marley, nor The Specials, but very few are, and the music he (and his team) produces is far from the syrupy, sales driven, slop I anticipated it to be. At times it strays a bit too close to Peter Andre-esque drivel, and the hints of I Need a Dollar (Aloe Blacc) and Whistle for the Choir (The Fratellis) heard on On My Cloud and I Dont Love You Too respectively, are a little heavy to ignore, but these are merely small criticisms. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3EG4olrFjY&ob=av2n In Dance With Me Tonight, the next single from the album, he doubtless has another chart topper, and you can almost forgive him for performing with The Muppets on Sunday nights X Factor (I really do mention X Factor a lot). Almost. And he even manages to develop his geographical knowledge on Ive Tried Everything when he sings We used to climb Primrose Hill Primrose Hill is nowhere near Essex!! Dont you just feel as though youre growing with him? Before I know it, Im tapping my foot along to an Olly Murs track and something inside of me dies.... But I dont care. The other track of note is Im Ok, a song about finding yourself dumped and reassuring everyone youre ok. Oh weve all been there havent we? We feel your pain Olly!! We even almost make it through without a cheesy pop ballad. Until he ruins it at the end. But well let that slide. Hes Olly. From Essex. And hes ok. And his albums alright. Oh, and hell be more successful than Joe McElderry. Of Jobseekers Allowance fame. Olly Murs' album In Case You Didn't Know is out now.