Adele’s Latest Album Lives up to the Hype

Gas Station Disco is among the bands inspired by Adele’s new music. Photo Courtesy / Michael Welten Gas Station Disco is among the bands inspired by Adele’s new music. Photo Courtesy / Michael Welten
Gas Station Disco is among the bands inspired by Adele’s new music. Photo Courtesy / Michael Welten
Gas Station Disco is among the bands inspired by Adele’s new music.
Photo Courtesy / Michael Welten

By Lauren Shook
A&E Editor

Adele released her newest album, “25,” on Friday, Nov. 20. Fans have eagerly waited for new music from the singer since her last album “21” was released in 2011.

Listeners got their first taste of “25” with the debut of the hit “Hello,” which came out this October.

The song quickly rose in popularity, and has appeared everywhere from the radio, to television commercials to Adele’s own live performances.

“Hello” also inspired a Thanksgiving themed Saturday Night Live sketch. The cast designed the sketch to address the awkward/tense conversations that frequently occur at family gatherings.

The actors reenacted parts of the “Hello” music video in a skit that was both relatable and hilarious.

Adele is currently dominating the charts on iTunes.

“Hello” is rated number one under the top songs and top music videos categories, and “25” is ranked as the number one top album as of Nov. 29.

Similar to her other albums, “25” includes many heart-wrenching ballads. Adele sings of love, heartbreak and loss in a majority of the tracks on this album.

“Send My Love (To Your New Lover)” is the second track of “25,” and exhibits some really catchy guitar. The song is all about forgiving and moving on.

“I Miss You” relies more heavily on drums as a main instrument in the song. It also has echoing backup vocals that create a feeling unique to the album.

The fourth track of “25,” “When We Were Young,” is another one of the more popular songs of the album. Adele performed this song live on SNL along with “Hello.”

This touching song is about capturing the moment, since it may be fleeting yet significant. Adele sings “Let me photograph you in this light, In case it is the last time.”

The piano in “Remedy” gives a really personal touch to the song. Adele reveals her dedication to someone, and implies that she would do anything for them.

She sings “When the pain cuts you deep, when the night keeps you from sleeping, just look and you will see, that I will be your remedy.”

Adele performed “Water Under the Bridge” live on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, while also taking part in several entertaining skits.

The song perfectly describes the confusion that follows a recent or upcoming breakup. Adele sings, “If you’re not the one for me, Why do I hate the idea of being free? And if I’m not the one for you, You’ve gotta stop holding me the way you do.”

Anyone who’s ever experienced an on-again off-again relationship can for sure relate to these lyrics.

While the ballads on “25” are all moving and touching, it becomes slightly mind-numbing listening to an entire album of very similar songs.

The final song of the album, “Sweetest Devotion,” finally provides a more upbeat track to finish the album.

There is no doubt that Adele is a massively talented artist who knows how to release really successful and relatable music.

Her presence in the media, whether it be on television or the radio, has been enormous recently.

YouTube is currently being flooded with inspired musicians covering the touching, relevant songs from “25.”

Michael Welten, lead singer of Gas Station Disco, explains why he was inspired to cover the song “Hello.”

“I felt like the song was so pure and powerful and you don’t really find that nowadays in mainstream music so I wanted to be a part of it yet put my own spin on it. So my band Gas Station Disco put something together and they contributed just as much as myself.”

Chances are you’ve already heard “Hello” more times than you can count, but the rest of the album also warrants a good listen.

Email Lauren at:
lshook2@live.esu.edu