7/10

Luke Sital-Singh released his debut single ‘Fail For You’ in 2012, introducing the world to his deft ability to craft songs with mesmerising, piercing emotion. The song went on to be featured in numerous TV shows including ABC’s ‘Grey’s Anatomy’. At the end of 2013, Sital-Singh was featured in the BBC's Sound of 2014 list and released his debut record ‘The Fire Inside’ later that year. Containing the acclaimed singles ‘The Last Day’, ‘Los Angeles’, and ‘Love Is Hard Enough Without The Winter’, Luke Sital-Singh’s new album ‘A Golden State’ documents a new life in California.

After living in Bristol for years, Sital-Singh relocated to Los Angeles to embrace a different way of life, to signal a change in being and in mindset. As he explains, “the record contains an Americana fantasy of wanting to escape to this gorgeous place, but it also explores the very things I’m looking to escape from.” The relationship between these two powers seems to inform the lyrical content, too. On ‘Raise Well’, Sital-Singh ponders fatherhood and the extended sense of life that having a child brings. Contrastingly, ‘The Last Day’ explores the anticipation of facing death to a stirring backdrop. The vast range of themes that ‘A Golden State’ covers are tied together by a style of production that pulls each track into cohesion.

The record’s title theme influenced every creative choice, even down to the microphones used in the recording process. By using vintage ribbon mics, ‘A Golden State’ holds a warm, smoky sonic palette. Matched with the integrity of his writing, Sital-Singh successfully creates an auditory representation of California’s famous golden hour and all of its colours.