Adele-"21" Review

As publicized as it was, Adele's reaction to the cataclysmic break-up with her anonymous lover was rather mature. True, maturity is something that she has been able to pride herself on, but her 2008 debut "19" still felt a little childish. It was a record that was to be appreciated, but not necessarily one to love. With the rage of her split to fuel her creativity, Adele kicks the sophomore slump in the rear and was able to produce a career defining record to heights unseen since Kelly Clarkson's "Breakaway" breakthrough back in 2004.

It should come as no surprise that "21" was the Adele's age at the time she recorded this album, and with the powerhouse lead single "Rolling in the Deep", she doesn't shy away from tackling her break-up dead on. However, while most singers would focus on the faults of the relationship and emphasize the flaws of the other partner, Adele is smart enough to realize that her split was partly her fault as well. "Don't You Remember?", a track that contains the closest resemblance to the material on "19", confesses Adele's own flaws in the relationship. And it's easy for her to do, as it is the product of true self-reflection. "21" is a record whose substance was created not only through deft studio craft, but the singer behind it also made big changes to her own life, creating a wiser, cleaner, and more aware person than in her teenage years. And she gracefully ages from an awkward teen to a woman. Had she recorded this album earlier, it would not be as endearing because the maturity would not have been present. Both lyrically and musically, Adele manages to sharpen her song-writing, while at the same time smoothly transitions into high-quality pop. She trades in slow, dreary piano pieces like "Hometown Glory" and replaces them with angsty passion in "Turning Tables" and "Take It All". Gone are the same-textured, over-grown soul pieces and in their place are energetic and refreshing tracks like "I'll Be Waiting", the closest Adele might ever get to a dance number. Even the long tracks, mainly the six-minute long "One and Only", are compelling, never sucking away the momentum and continue to satitsfy after innumerable plays. And while it gets redundant to constantly mourn over her lost love, "21" is without a doubt genuine. It posesses a maturity and grace that few albums in the 2010s (and 21-years olds) have. Don't let "Rolling in the Deep" fool you, for as over-hyped as it becomes, "21" maintains very high quality in all eleven of its songs. It's much more thrilling than its predecessor, and it's much more appealing to more audiences, causing it to be a more well-rounded and addictive album at the same time.

Recommended Tracks in Bold:
1. Rolling in the Deep            2. Rumour Has It      3. Turning Tables
4. Don’t You Remember?       5. Set Fire to the Rain          
6. He Won’t Go                     7. Take It All               8. I’ll Be Waiting      
9. One and Only                     10. Love song             11. Someone Like You