Vance Joy: Dream Your Life Away Atlantic

Fans of Ed Sheeran, Passenger and Jack Johnson may want to walk directly towards Vance Joy. The Melbourne singer-songwriter (real name James Keogh; the stage moniker was influenced by the writings of Peter Carey) last year signed a five-album deal with Atlantic Records. Those partial to a Mumford & Sons-like ukulele flailing (triple platinum hit song Riptide is a teeth-grinding example) might also want to approach with no caution whatsoever. Minor cynicism aside, there's nothing wrong with a well-constructed love song, and Dream Your Life Away is full of them. From opening track Winds of Change (which neatly balances Bob Dylan with Ed Sheeran) to tunes such as All I Ever Wanted and My Kind of Man, Joy/Keogh references more than usual, but for all of that he's definitely on the way up – spin- cycle ukulele or not. vancejoy. com