2.20.13 - New Music - Matt Cardle

I don’t write nearly enough about the past winners of The X Factor (the British one – not this new American silliness) as I should, so here we go.

Matt Cardle won the seventh season of the X Factor and has been working very hard ever since. He put out an album in 2011 and 2012, and though very few of the singles have performed well (the first one or two always do after you win one of these things – it’s what happens afterwards that counts), he’s still making really interesting music. I respect his grind and his choice to not stay on the easy-hit road.

“Lately” is the album (his sophomore set ‘The Fire’) going away from whatever is happening in music now and into the arms of Queen. It fringes on fun., but sadly I don’t hear radio success in this one, great as it is.

The track is epic and shows off Cardle’s imperfect high vocal range. The video matches in tone and beauty, and I have to applaud everything happening here.