The second album from London based singer/songwriter was co-produced by Jeremy Stacey (Sheryl Crow, Nerina Pallot). Baxter continues with the laidback, easy listening pop of his debut while incorporating Spanish influences into his sound. Among the songs is the single "Better", which was featured in the Simon Pegg/David Schwimmer movie RUN, FAT BOY RUN. . Anyone that heard British singer/songwriter Tom Baxters superb 2004 debut album Feather and Stone, will have marked him down as a consummate talent and inevitable chart-botherer. But while Baxters obvious skills garnered a heap of critical reviews, he somehow failed to penetrate the mainstream. The same fate seems unlikely to befall Skybound, Baxters sophomore effort and an album that more than makes good on his early promises. Combining his soulful, mesmerising voice with understated guitar and piano work and some deft songwriting, Skybound is more a concept album than its predecessor, in that it loosely charts the journey from boy to man. As before Baxter fuses elements of jazz and blues with compelling results, adding rhythmic double bass and orchestral accompaniments that create a mellifluous and sophisticated aura. There are some affecting Spanish touches too, such as the Andalucian flourishes on the title track and the flamenco undertones of "Tell Her Today". While the ballads here--"Better" for example-can tend towards the schmaltzy, Baxter balances these moments with darker material like the fabulously moody, tempo-changing "Icarus Wings". Its a solid second album that, just like the first, has "bright future" written all over it. --Danny McKenna Review He's not one to hide his feelings away, is Tom Baxter. A singer/songwriter from the school of writing lyrics so emotionally raw you can see the blood in them, Baxter returns with his second album, a mash of chill-out, soul and latin sounds that lifts itself above the morass. Shelf stackers are likely to bundle him in with the more sanitised James Blunt, but a comparison to Scott Matthews would be more appropriate, with a soulful, passionate voice that sometimes brings to mind Elvis Costello or Randy Newman, when clogged with emotions. Latin influence has clearly come to play in creating Skybound, giving the album a softly energetic feel. It's nothing too out of the ordinary, but it marks Baxter out from the rest of those regaling us with tales of emotional woe. The lovely ''Icarus Wings'' and ''Tell Her Today''both use the latin influence best, with the rhythms pushing the music along, and giving the tracks an air of urgency. Baxter injects an element of blackness with ''Half A Man'', with lyrics so painful they can only have been created in the lonely, sleepless early hours of the morning. Lines like 'aware that with every heart of gold, there retains its currency/ so if you believe love's cause is free, you can call me a fool to call it robbery/ but I only know that once I was whole and now there's half of me', form a nice counter balance to the joyful enthusiasm for love heard earlier in the album. It is the happy, happy, joy, joy elements that let the album down slightly. "Miracle feels" a teeny bit trite, with a lovely sentiment that is just a bit too familiar. And after ten tracks devoted solely to the joys and trials of love, you do feel that a new subject matter might be a good idea for the next disc. Skybound is not an album that will tempt the trendy young masses, but with any justice will draw in a crowd of loyal fans. For something mellow, meaningful, and not too MOR you could do far, far worse than this generally lovely album. --Helen Groom This link will take you offin a new window
