Lawson - Chapman Square

Introduction

It is not easy to review a debut album from a new group, and this is the time for the newly British boyband Lawson. Not a typical vocal group,Lawson is composed of Andy who provides also the vocal and Joel, Ryan and Adam who play the instruments. Apparently, they are finally getting to the spotlight after two years of supporting bigger acts through the U.K. And here they go with her debut album Chapman Square.

Overview

Despite being a debut album, Chapman Square shows a very solid, clear and precise sound. The songs follow a common line that is their musical and writing style. All the tracks are (co)written by the band itself,with a strong presence of the lead vocalist. Immediately from the album opener, Standing in the Dark, I have personally had the reminiscent of the late 90s/2000s boyband A1 (Caught in the Middle,which was a very nice pop song, by the way, so this should be seen asa compliment). The vocals are strong and clean, the musicality of the songs is absolutely pleasant and set a kind of atmosphere which is really a good thing for a debut act.

Another highlight of the album is their second single, Taking Over Me.Again. The sound is still following the lines of the two previous tracks but it adds that something that radio loves (this is in fact their highest ranking single so far, #3). Catchy chorus, very nice verses, vocals and instrumentals absolutely on top, definitely a hit song for them.

Track number 9, Stolen, is another great enjoyable melodic pop song. Nice lyrics (well, nothing too deep but not “baby baby I miss you”),instant chorus, very radio friendly in my opinion, it could follow directly Taking Over Me. 

The album closes (well, the Standard Version, which I am reviewing) with two ballads, You didn't Tell Me and The Girl I knew. Both of the entirely penned buy Adam. Nice raw and stripped songs, not masterpieces, to be honest, but it is nice to see some effort.

The verdict

As previously said, this is not a typical debut album from a boyband.The sound of the band is well defined, both the vocals and the instrumentals are more than ok. The choices for the singles are quite good even though, despite being their first single, When She Was Mine is not particularly outstanding, the two following singles sound better. Overall it is a very decent album,you have to like their sound, it is not the kind of album that you think “let's see if there is something different in the next tracks”, nope, the style is clear since the beginning so if you want to test this album, you can follow our advice and choose one of the highlights we propose and make your own decision. 

Having said this, I am definitely going to see how their carrier will leadthem. For now this album for me earns a:

3/5