Reviewed by Ian Phillips.
By Ruel, RCA Records/Sony Music Australia 2019.
Ruel is one of the new crop of Australian multi-instrumentalist singer/songwriters making a splash both locally and internationally.
Free Time follows the release of his first EP, Ready, which has earned Ruel multi-platinum status as well as gold record accreditation for the singles Dazed & Confused, Younger, and Don’t Tell Me.
Among the many accolades Ruel has received is that he is the youngest recipient in history to win the prestigious ARIA Award for Breakthrough Artist Of The Year.
Earlier this year Ruel released the first single from Free Time (Face To Face) to substantial critical acclaim.
Paper Magazine praised the song for “capturing the anxieties in teen and Millennial hearts alike.”
Free Time was written in between Ruel’s global touring schedule and sees him team up with Grammy Award winning Producer M-Phases and a team of collaborators including Sarah Aarons (Zedd, Alessia Cara), Tobias Jesso Jr. (Adele, Sia) and Joseph Angel (Rihanna) among others.
Although he is still young (16 years) Ruel’s rise to stardom started at an early age. He first began playing the guitar and writing songs when he was eight years old.
Fast forward to today and his success seems to be instantaneous.
It’s been under 18 months since the release of his first single, Don’t Tell Me and since then he’s been praised by no less a luminary as Sir Elton John and he’s become the youngest male performer to twice sell out the Sydney Opera House as well as shows across Australia, North America, Asia and Europe.
He has amassed a combined 300 million global streams to date.
Of this seven track EP Ruel says: “For this EP I went into the writing room with a bit more life experience and a clearer creative direction on how I approached the songs. These songs are the most personal I’ve put out to date and I really feel like I discovered a specific sound for this project.”
Piano is a dominant instrument on Free Time and the mix has a lot of space in it.
Ballads dominate the EP. Ruel has a good voice and he delivers the songs with emotion and passion.
Free Time is a good EP and it is sure to further enhance Ruel’s burgeoning reputation.
