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Like many others, I found Ed Sheeran thanks to his friendship and collaboration with Taylor Swift on her 2012 album Red. He was in my regular rotation of artists I listened to with the releases of his first several albums, but unfortunately for me, he faded into the background of my listening habits when he disappeared from music (and the spotlight altogether) for about 4 years following 2017's ÷ (Divide). I'm a huge fan of Aaron Dessner and his production work on albums like Taylor's Folklore and Gracie Abrams' Good Riddance, so when I learned that Aaron had partnered up with Ed to produce this album, - (Subtract), I was intrigued-- and I was not disappointed.
Stand-out tracks: "Dusty" "End of Youth" "No Strings"
My favorites: "Curtains" "Spark"
The album opens on a relatively soft note with "Boat," which beautifully shows off Ed's vocal talent while illustrating the metaphor of overcoming challenges with "the waves won't break my boat." Aaron Dessner's incredible talent as a producer really starts to shine on "Salt Water," with the melancholy, piano-based instrumental backing up haunting lyricism ("I'm free in salt water/embrace the deep and leave everything/it was just a dream") and Ed's powerful middle vocal range. Subtract's lead single, "Eyes Closed," isn't really anything special in contrast to the rest of the album, but it does effectively takes the indie pop-rock style Ed Sheeran was known for with his previous albums with songs like "Shivers" and "Shape of You," and transforms it to be a little more mature thanks to the song's subject matter (we've got a pandemic song ladies and gents) and the acoustic-based poppiness of the production (I should have known only good things would come when Max Martin, Shellback, and Aaron Dessner collaborate). "Life Goes On" is classic Ed Sheeran-- guitar and piano instrumentals coupled with passionate, soaring vocals depicting the tumultuousness of heartbreak.
The tone shifts towards a more electronic soft-rock sound with "Dusty"-- this one is incredibly appealing from its visual storytelling in "drop the needle on Dusty/frost on the leaves like a lake/the moment came out of nothing/a beautiful smile on your face" to it's fuller, cozy sound.
The joy doesn't last long though, with "Dusty" transitioning into "End of Youth."
Lyrically, this is one of the most gutwrenching songs I've ever come across, ever. No one really writes about the grief realizing you may have lost parts of yourself, but with lyrics like "You can't talk me through the fall if we don't know if I can land/tried to grow, but the past, it tears me down to size/tell the world how to process, but don't take the same advice," this song embodies the heaviness of coming into adulthood with stunning artistry. No one can sing a tragically passionate piano-and-drum ballad with quite the same effect that Ed Sheeran can.
"Curtains" turns to a deeper, more dynamic sound and is chock-full of really great lyrics illustrating the empowerment that comes from finally pulling yourself out of a dark place. The electric guitars and the repetitive "and tomorrow's another day/let me see the sunshine" make for a really fun hook. The production of "Spark" is probably my favorite of the entire album. It's very piano-heavy in a yearning way and it meshes beautifully with the hopeful "use words as kindling/light up the night sky/let the memories take flight/and hope the sparks survive."
The closing act of Subtract comes with back-to-back tracks "Sycamore" and "No Strings"-- a beautiful pairing of truly human love songs. The former tells the story of the power of hope in the face of a health crisis and the latter illustrates the unrelenting power of simply fighting for the ones you love ("this is no strings/you are who I love/it's just growing pains/we did not fight for love/just to let it be defeated").
Subtract is everything I hoped it would be-- vocally powerful, lyrically charged, and packed with perfectly-produced encompassing instruments. Personally, I'm thrilled that Ed dropped the hip-hop/rap influences of some of his earlier albums in favor of a more indie-rock vibe with Subtract. Aaron Dessner's production makes for a well-rounded album in terms of instrumentals, and while Ed Sheeran has always been good at capturing emotionality and story-telling, Subtract really allows those strengths to shine.
AM I OBSESSED?
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