Bradley Simpson's 'The Panic Years' - A dazzling solo debut album
Released on February 28th, The Panic Years is one of this months most anticipated albums, hailing from the home studio of The Vamps heartthrob, Bradley Simpson.
First announced on November 8th of last year, The Panic Years comes after a successful run of singles including Cry at the Moon, Picasso and Daisies - each of which earned rightful spots within the album’s 12-track line-up.
For those unfamiliar with his work, Bradley’s music can best be categorised as a blend of contemporary indie, pop and rock filled with 80’s-reminiscent synths and gritty lyricism. Departing from the boyband blend of his work with The Vamps, his latest venture is strikingly evocative, with honest and original storytelling that’s sure to make him stand out as a solo artist you just have to love.
Taking sonic inspiration from his early influences such as Queens of the Stone Age and The Raconteurs, Bradley wrote The Panic Years over the last two years, consolidating his last decade’s worth of life experiences into 37 minutes of anecdotal lyricism and captivating melodies.
In an interview with Redbrick, Bradley explained that "The whole reason behind the album being called The Panic Years is because I think a lot of people put their twenties as their 'panic years' and not having a fucking clue what you're doing! Especially when you're younger, you look at certain ages and you're like 'that's so old, I'll have my everything together by the time I'm that old', but I've learnt that you never necessarily have a real handle on it - you're always learning.
What I perceived in the moment of 'panic years' and not knowing were actually some of the best times of my life and the times where I learnt the most. Hopefully, the whole album and era can give people that reassurance that even when you're in your 'panic years', it's going to be fine, you'll come out of the other end and you'll have learnt more about yourself."
Before we delve deeper into the album, make sure to listen along on Spotify! Though we’re huge advocates of listening to projects start-to-finish as most artists intend them to be, we’d recommend the title track, The Panic Years as well as Holy Grail and Not Us Anymore to get started.
Taking first place in the track list is Cry at the Moon, the album’s lead single that was originally released on March 22nd of last year. What begins as an Americana-esque guitar track quickly earns its stripes as a bass-heavy introduction to yearning for someone you just can’t come back from. Relating himself to the mythological creature of a werewolf, Bradley sings: “Now I cry at the moon, she don’t shine quite like you / I’m all wrapped up in chains and I wonder what to do.”
Next comes Picasso, which originally joined streaming platforms on May 10th of last year and has quickly become a fan-favourite from the album. Often played during the encore of his shows, Bradley once again shows off his aptitude for singing in metaphors with a track that details a self-destructive fling with someone who could only ever be a muse for tragedy.
A great example of a dance-worthy song with heart-wrenching lyrics, the chorus is one of our favourites from The Panic Years: “You paint only tragedy, and I’ll keep coming back to you / Where’d you learn to break a heart? / Turn the torture into art / Who the hell d’you think you are? Picasso? Oh-oh-oh / Painting burns and painful scars / Brushing on my body parts / I’d do anything for my Picasso, oh-oh.”
Speaking of burns, the album’s third track, Carpet Burn is a seamless continuation of Picasso - a sister-song if you will. With lyrics that sketch the portrait of a far healthier and connected love than the last, Bradley sings: “I’ll take every moment I get but it gets me down that I didn’t know you before we met / I’ll take all the time we got left but it gets me down that I didn’t know you before we met.”
A song that’s sure to be a radio classic for years to come, Carpet Burn encompasses everything that we love about Bradley’s debut album. It’s confessional. It’s warm and uplifting. And best of all, it’s a track that’s universal enough for new and old fans alike to relate to.
Thematically light and addictively poppy, Daisies comes next in the track list, delivering what we can best describe as the pulse of the album. Having seen him live (a review of which will be coming soon!) Daisies was definitely our favourite addition to the setlist, bringing an unmatched energy to the crowd who quite literally threw daisies at the singer during the opening line.
A feel-good tune where Bradley sings, “If you need me, baby just say so / I could be around for you, so don’t call me / Only on nights or weekends,” Daisies is a much-needed pick-me-up alongside the emotionally weightier songs we all know and love, too.
Best of all is, of course, Holy Grail. Much like a Taylor Swift-style track five, Bradley’s is vulnerable and chock-full of lyrics that could be analysed as well as poetry.
First written at Wendy House Studios in London then finished at the legendary Flux Studios in New York, Holy Grail is a stunning demonstration of Bradley’s vocal and lyrical maturity. Slow-burning from quiet intimacy into a rich, guitar-strung soundscape, the song celebrates the hopes, fears and joys of a future with the person he loves. As the last single he released before the album’s arrival, Bradley often tells fans just how much he loves this song, and we’re sure it has a place in their hearts, too.
A song that, according to Bradley is “about feeling like you’re finally on the right track and settling into change,” Getting Clear takes the sixth and centre spot within the album.
Fit with sultry electric guitar melodies and lyrics to match, Bradley sings: “Going from sunset to sunrise / Cold days to respites / Rushing to taking your time / Didn’t know how good it would feel way over here / Feel the sky is burning up, it’s getting clear.” A great palette-refresher and underrated banger within the overarching narrative of The Panic Years, Getting Clear feels like a resolution to what could be dubbed side A of the album.
Next comes Not Us Anymore, a much angstier tune where Bradley recounts a failed relationship, asking “How did holding your hand turn to holding an empty cup?” Singing of blooming flowers and the same-old routine of grabbing cafe coffee, Bradley juxtaposes the ever-turning carousel of everyday life with the stillness that comes after a relationship ends. Tortured and broken-hearted, they’ve been “turned to strangers, nothing more” and “everything’s just like before / but it’s not us anymore.”
Diving deeper into the emotional crux of the album, the next track, Almost comes as a simple reminder of just how impermanent life can be, recalling a time with someone when “We got close, started to feel / Only to leave, soon as it’s real.”
With a production that’s slightly different from the rest of The Panic Years and much like The 1975’s debut album, Almost feels as if Bradley’s singing straight from his diary. In a confession that - within his discography - could be named ‘the avoidant attachment’s anthem,’ Bradley sings: “We’ve got so much in common, including the issues / I’ll pull away cause I know that I’ll miss you / That’s when it hits me, so suddenly / You were almost the best thing that happened to me.”
Bringing listeners back to the world of infectious pop, Favourite Band takes the ninth spot in The Panic Years’ track list. Forget the five stages of grief, because Bradley skips right to bragging in this sassy lyric-laden track of revenge by success. Telling an ex-lover just how inescapable his memory will be, Bradley sings: “I’m gonna write a song, hit single baby / Something I can do to prove you wrong / Drive you crazy when it’s sitting there at number one / You never cared for coming, now you understand / I’m in your new boys’ favourite band.”
For an album that’s all about the tumultuousness of your 20’s and navigating the changes of love, life and relationships, the transition between Almost and Favourite Band seems pretty fitting.
Channelling even more of that inner fire, Always Like This is next up with its propulsive drums and smooth guitar riffs. One of his most energetic songs to perform live, the track has a frantic, irregular quality to it that captures just how it feels to not know if you’ll pull yourself out of a dark place. The musical equivalent of staying up too late and spiralling, Bradley sings, “Oh, I wonder at night where she goes / Sit and pull petals off of a rose / Just another, she sunk like a stone / I just hope it ain't always like this.”
Pulling listeners out from the falling action of The Panic Years’ storytelling comes The Band’s Not Breaking Up, the album’s penultimate track. A slower ballad that begins with a simple “hello there”, Bradley sings about reconnecting with someone he hasn’t talked to in months. Thematically matched by a Spotify canvas of him strumming along on the guitar, Bradley confesses “I’ve been doing my own thing / Then you ask about the boys and you wonder if this is the end.”
What’s so clever about The Band’s Not Breaking Up is that - yes, it’s about Bradley grappling with his departure from The Vamps - but this ending mirrors the one of a relationship, too. In “a Winter of change [that’s] so fucking scary / Because I just feel out of my depth,” the singer has to learn how to be by himself for once - both romantically, and in his solo career.
Signifying that he’s reached the stage of acceptance, The Band’s Not Breaking Up is a true gem within his discography and one that you’ll need a box of tissues to listen to, that’s for sure.
Finally, the album’s twelfth and titular track, The Panic Years comes in to summarise what we’ve heard over the last 37 minutes. In the first verse, Bradley sings of “Ten years of panic, now I’m stuck here stranded / Cause I missed the train to get to you,“ before we’re brought full circle: “Caught eyes as the lights turned red and it feels like I’m eighteen again.”
A beautiful tribute of a love song, Bradley admits that “I’ll wait for you if it’s forever / Till I turn blue, I’ll hold my breath for ten more years of panic / I’ll be right where I’m standing, next to you, you.” With a softer perspective on the heartaches and growing pains of the last ten years, the album concludes as he realises he’d wait ten more just to be exactly where he was always meant to.
Whether you’re looking for your next favourite heartbreak ballad or a high-energy tune to blast through the speakers on the drive home, The Panic Years delivers an effortless mix of musical highs, lows and new beginnings.
It’s no secret that Bradley is a phenomenal performer who genuinely cares about his fans and his craft, but The Panic Years is a stellar example of a record that is whole-heartedly real and honest and connected.
We can definitely say that after ten years of panic, Bradley Simpson can rest assured that his debut album deserves all the flowers it will undoubtedly receive.
After taking his band on their widest European headline tour to date last year with a clean run of sold-out UK shows, Bradley will soon be heading back on the road to celebrate his debut album’s release. Culminating with a major London show at the O2 Forum Kentish Town, there are plenty more live performances on the horizon for Bradley Simpson - all the tickets for which you can find via his website.
During his latest Instagram Live in celebration of The Panic Years’ release, Bradley told fans: “There are so many memories looking back on the album and more to be made now. There’s also lots of exciting things to come in the next few months - who knows? But stay tuned!”
To keep updated with his work, make sure to follow Bradley Simpson on Instagram - and stream The Panic Years on Spotify below:
