ALBUM: Jack Savoretti 'Written In Scars'

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At twenty-six, the Italian-English singer songwriter Jack Savoretti is already headlining Shepherd’s Bush Empire, and is selling out dates fast on his upcoming tour. It seems there is something about Italian artists – they have a lump in their throat, a rasp in their voice and an ear for rhythmic poetic lyrics. When you hear Savoretti’s new album, you hear a more refined Paolo Nutini with the bitter-sweet storytelling of Once and boundless soul by the bucketful. Written In Scars, his upcoming fourth album, is dripping with pain and retribution, wrapped up in foot-tapping beats and ravishing raspy tones.

Savoretti has often spoken of the influence his Italian heritage has had on his writing, and his latest release is no exception. You can hear his European background in the Spanish-style guitars of the album’s title track, and a timeless folk-esque mood littered right across the album. Past and present influences on his writing include Sam Dixon, Matt Benbrook and Steve Brooker who between them have worked with Paolo Nutini, Jake Bugg, Adele, Sia and Duffy, and this calibre of inspiration shows in the eclectic medley that is the beauty of this album.

What is perhaps Savoretti’s quintessential sound is his flair for foot-tapping melancholy songs that sing of heartbreak and lust in one neat little package. ‘Back To Me’, a single from the album, is marked by its despondent piano, soulful guitar and a forsaken passion in the addictive lyrics and beat. Songs like ‘Don’t Mind Me’ and ‘Fight ‘Til The End’ follow this intoxicating trend, with a gritty and contentious sound.

That rich, rasping voice that breaks Savoretti from the crowd is best heard in ‘Nobody ‘Cept You’, a track consisting of nothing but an acoustic guitar, lovelorn lyrics and his striking voice. It’s this simple assembly that best exhibits Savoretti as the raw and vivacious writer that he is. As such an eclectic album, there can sometimes be a rather a lot going on and back-to-basics interlude is more than welcome. Both ‘Tie Me Down’ and ‘Broken Glass’ have a much simpler sound which create an intimate atmosphere for anyone listening.

One aspect of the album is that it perfectly presents Savoretti’s aptitude for poetically moving and intensely gorgeous lyrics. ‘Wasted’ is a song of lost love and unhappy relationship, the female harmonies adding another poignant layer to the story he is telling.

And yet, amidst all the melancholy and the heartbreak, Savoretti can rise us up and start a revolution of love and hope and (most probably) dancing in the namesake song of the album, ‘Written In Scars’. The track is an anthem of the broken, a celebration of people and the pain that makes them. That foot-tapping, irresistible element shows through again both in ‘Written In Scars’ and ‘The Hunger’, a luscious and sexy song that is so infectious it just makes you want to move.

This man is a coffee-shop masterpiece, the kind of artist that moves you but not so unsubtly that you have a lump in your throat. There is a reason he has a headline tour of Caffe Neros under his belt; he is the sort of sound you can run away with on a rainy day. Somehow, through the humble delivery of his silky smooth and poetic lyrics, his pain can make you smile. His musical style is ethereal and textured, a never-ending medley of influences and instruments which is hypnotic as it is infectious. This album shows the story of a talented writer, and he is definitely an artist to watch.

Written In Scars is released on 9^th February via Fulfill Records.

Eleanor Langford
@eleanormia