Rixton make the best move with the starting song and title track of their debut album 'Let The Road', showcasing each individual's member's ability to really give it some welly in a Warblers Glee-esque tune. It's an inspired choice and something we were yet to hear from the group. We knew they could do catchy pop numbers, but this really shows off the talents of the foursome.
With 'Let The Road' being more like an introduction to the guys rather than an opening track, things really get going with 'Wait On Me'. Benny Blanco's stamp is felt immediately alongside Stargate on production in a tune that has the perfect formula for a smash hit. It may seem excessive to have seven writers for a single offering, but if this is the standard of song we'll get from such a thing I'm all for it.
'Appreciated' is your standard emotional boyband piece. It's not quite in the same league as One Direction's 'Night Changes' - sorry to make comparisons - but it can stand on its own two feet as something unique for the band to deliver, paving the way perfectly to transcend into the superior ballad 'Beautiful Excuses'.
Usually with a debut album, a boyband will go straight for the pop jugular and deliver a bunch of infectious beats that embed themselves in the minds of teeny-boppers, never daring to push the boundaries of what an all-male group are expected to produce. 'Beautiful Excuses' shows that Rixton aren't like the rest - they'll allow their walls to fall down and take a risk, and it's one that pays off exponentially. Better still, you actually believe every word they sing - it feels like they may actually have some experience in this area. Look at the writers on this track in particular and that's backed up with the fact that all four members of the band wrote the song without co-writers.
'Me And My Broken Heart' is of course a little slice of pop heaven, whilst 'Hotel Ceiling' once again strips thing back for an emotional and passionate performance of a song detailing a hard break-up - something a lot can relate to. Writing here comes from Ed Sheeran as well as Benjamin Levin, and it's not difficult to imagine the former with guitar in hand taking it on solo. Though it's not quite single material, it's definitely one of the most exciting moments on the LP, or at the very least, one that will stay with the listener long after indulging.
Mike Posner joins writers Levin and Ammar Malik to put together 'I Like Girls' - a song in a celebration of the female gender which quickly paints the ladies as "teases" - not something we can fully get behind, but luckily it's the shortest song on the collection.
'Speakerphone' is another tune the group have written alone - it's not as rewarding as their former tune 'Beautiful Excuses' but it won't be found offensive.
Released ahead of the album, 'We All Want The Same Thing' is a song that's perfect for summer. The band have the knack of being able to weave their way impressively through a track like this one, delivering the best song from their catalogue to-date.
Rounding things off is the incredible 'Whole' where the band are allowed to leave you in the knowledge that they're not just another group formed for the fame and money. They're passionate about the industry they've stepped into and their music is a perfect standard for those that will come after. The era of the boyband is now, and Rixton should well and truly be leading the way.
Rixton's debut album 'Let The Road' is officially released on Monday, June 15.
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