Like most of Sam Smith’s singles this one starts with a sub-story. In the case of ‘Restart’ the story is very self-concerned on Sam’s part with reporters in the background preaching “he’s on everybody’s one to watch list”. Now, all of this would be fine if the track which followed backed up their statements…Sorry Sam but it’s just a little S-Club for my taste.
Not only is there something very distracting about the numerable backing tracks in play, but in combination with Sam’s iconic falsetto voice which makes up a considerable proportion of the song, the overall impression is somewhat overwhelming. I’m not sure whether Sam was keen on testing out some different instrumental techniques or if there was a mix up in the sound room but someone needs to tell him to stick to what he’s good at. You never know, an acoustic version could still resurrect this disaster.
‘Restart’ is out now via Capitol records.
