“Stellify” – Ian Brown

4 stars (out of 5)

0

You wouldn’t exactly say that he’s prolific. Since the Stone Roses days, the new material has arrived at lengthy intervals. It’s usually described as “eagerly anticipated” and it may not always have been great, but it’s always been interesting. The news with “Stellify” is that it’s very good indeed, it’s a noughties love song.and it’s a great big glorious noise which sounds great on the radio.

“Stellify” (become a star?) starts with a simple and effective two keyboard riff (piano and keyboards on alternating half beats) then in come Ian Brown’s unmistakable vocals and the tune builds as first drums and then bass come in to complete an uncomplicated but incredibly effective arrangement. At around two minutes in there’s a bit of a Mark Ronson moment when the song breaks down to a two-trumpet riff (actually it sounds more like synthesised brass to me, rather than the polite interjections that we usually find on Ronson productions). The raw brass sound works perfectly as a contrast to the smooth arrangement of the rest of the song and then we’re off again building towards a slap ending at three and a half minutes.

In this edit, everything is in that needs to be there and nothing that shouldn’t be there and it’s the right length for radio play. It’s a song which should keep the fans happy, works on the radio and doesn’t make compromises to do that. Great single.

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