Album Review: Ben Hazlewood - Bloodline
Ben Hazlewood bares it all on his latest release Bloodline. With soulful vocals and perfectly penned lyrics, this album serves as a reminder that if you’re feeling lost, wounded, or heartbroken, you are most definitely not alone in that experience. Although a New Zealand native, Hazlewood’s career launched on The Voice Australia back in 2012, and since then has released multiple songs, two EP’s (Eos & Vanta), and has racked up just over 42,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. With a sound reminiscent to the likes of Sam Smith, Lukas Graham, and Calum Scott, Hazlewood leaves no room for disappointment on Bloodline. It only leaves us wanting more material to fuel our broken hearts and journey to self-discovery.
‘Give Me Something’ is a strong opening track and defines what the album is, a body of work about lost love and the lessons learned from that experience. Hazlewood’s vocals stand out beautifully against the backing of a choir in this song as he pleads for his lost lover to give him something that he can hold onto. Although gloomy in theme, the up-beat feel to this track carries the weight of his profound words so well that you might not even think it’s about a break-up. Tracks that follow, such as ‘Lay Me Down’ and ‘Lover’, are still upbeat but more guitar-driven. They both focus on the positive experiences we all hope for in love, being able to be next to that person that we all think about and taking on the world with them. However, in the first half of Bloodline, ‘Lying’ is the true stand out and captures the essence of a break-up anthem perfectly. The first line of the chorus is confronting and grabs us in as he sings, “I could tell you that I’m doing better but I’m lying,” which only gives us all the feels because we know that feeling all too well, and our minds go back to that one person that we can’t seem to forget about. At this point, if Hazlewood’s goal was to force us to reflect on our own difficult experiences with love, he has certainly succeeded and we’re only halfway through the record.
Hazlewood shifts his focus on ‘Fear Is Catching’ from trouble in relationships, to examining the trouble that sits deep within ourselves. ‘Revelry’ delves into the same topic, but musically is one of those songs that really makes you want to be a part of something whether it is an important cause or organisation, or simply just standing up for your own opinion. Perhaps it’s the way we are introduced to the song with a Gospel-inspired melody, as Hazlewood and his background singers chant, “Oh Lord, I feel like I’m losing my mind/Joining in the revelry, I’m gonna break this time,” in the opening line. It really makes you feel something and makes you consider what you feel strongly about, which is definitely important for the current times that we live in.
‘Chasing Lights’ and ‘Damned’ bring us back to the theme of loss, heartbreak, and missing the one that got away. The chorus’ in both songs are anthemic, as Hazlewood once again uses his powerhouse vocals to get the message across to a love that has been lost. ‘Heartbeat’, is an up-beat and heartfelt ballad as the singer discusses finding a sense of safety in someone that you love whilst you may be going through your own struggle. ‘The Way You Do’ explores a similar theme while closing out the album. It has an enchanting guitar-driven melody paired with poetic lyrics. It serves as the perfect send off for a record that has taken us through an emotional journey from start to finish.
Hazlewood opens up his own wounds on Bloodline to show you that you are not alone through the unglamorous experience of heartbreak. Each track is an anthem for all those feelings that you might have been bottling up inside and can’t make sense of, and this album does us a favour by putting it all into musical form. We’re sure this won’t be the last we’ll be seeing of Hazlewood as Bloodline has shown that he is a force (and an insane set of vocal cords!) to be reckoned with. If you haven’t added these songs to your break-up playlist, I highly recommend that you do so right now.
Reviewed by: Shelley Earwaker