Scottish born and raised Lewis Capaldi has risen above even his comprehension over the past year. He sold out an arena tour before his debut album was even released, and spent six weeks at number one in the UK singles charts. He’s hoping to do the same with his debut album Divinely Uninspired To A Hellish Extent.

The 22 year-old has become not only a singing sensation with his incredible voice, but also a star on social media, becoming meme after meme. His recent marketing campaign for the album is incredible (check out the ads on the London Underground below), he’s been able to reach a wider audience, making them laugh, unapologetically being himself and not taking himself too seriously.

But memes and swearing aside Capaldi deserves the recent success he’s gained, he’s got an incredible raspy voice that oozes with emotion and grabs your attention. He opens the 12 strong record with Grace, a single he released early last year. It makes you listen from the first lyric, one of his more pop’esque tracks it’s remarkably catchy considering it’s on the midst of being a breakup song.

Also released as a single last year, Bruises follows. A much slower song it compliments Grace. It’s a number with beautiful lyrics that really paints a picture when you listen to it, Capaldi really nails the balance between the verses and chorus as it slowly builds. Bruises will be a stunning acoustic song if you see him live, it shows off his voice without needing anything fancy to go with it.

His most recent single to be released, Hold Me While You Wait is yet another track with wonderful lyrics that are not only relatable but can be applied to anyone. It’s a song that grows on you, and without a doubt mega catchy (you’ll have the chorus stuck in your head for hours after listening to it). The melody is beautiful, my only slight criticism is it’s maybe a bit repetitive – he could have done something a bit different with the bridge.

The next song having spent six weeks at the top of the single chart in the UK speaks for itself. Someone You Loved is not only the most beautiful reflective post break up song, but Capaldi’s tone is out of this world and you can hear the emotion in his voice. He takes you on a journey with it, maybe that’s why its done so well (also mega catchy).

Maybe, the first new song on the album is very Ed Sheeran like in the way it’s written and tells a story. I love that it’s a self-reflective song about yourself getting in the way of achieving what you want to. It’s quite a brave thing to do, to write about yourself and be as honest as he does – it’s refreshing. You can hear how frustrated he is about himself in his voice, it’s stunning.

Forever, is a gorgeous ballad that paints a picture in your mind with the descriptive lyrics. It’s got a terrific melody that draws you in, his vocals are slightly softer (not as raspy) on this track which shows off his vocal ability – he also seems to do the higher notes with ease.  The guitars on the bridge really add to the atmosphere of the number, it makes it more emotional.

One, is quite a postive breakup song both in lyrics (becoming a better person after someone leaves your life) and melody. It’s quite an upbeat number (for a Lewis Capaldi song), and the lyrics yet again are seemingly faultless. The last chorus and how it builds really make it spectacular (even though it is slightly repetitive).

Don’t Get Me Wrong winds down again after the previous track which is actually quite nice. It’s got elements of jazz and it’s quite a soulful number which is different from his other tracks. It’s another song with amazing lyrics, it’s about knowingly hurting yourself and others but doing it anyway.

Another more upbeat number that jumps straight into the lyrics is Hollywood. It’s a great album track that shows of his vocal abilities. It doesn’t feel as much of a heartbreak song because the melody and beat are quite fast. I like the juxtaposition of that even though it’s about a relationship not working out after time together.

Lost On You is a number that was released before the album came out. It’s quite a dreamy song even though it’s about loving someone and having to let them go. It’s a punch in the chest kind of song because the lyrics and melody are glorious.

Fade, starts a little darker with the instrumentals and builds to the chorus which is beautiful. The lyrics (yet again) are phenomenal – ‘you come rip all the air from out my lungs’. The melody is one of my favourites on the album, it’s catchy but gives you goosebumps both at the same time.

The final song on the record Headspace shows him growing used to the pain of heartbreak (which in itself is heartbreaking). It’s a harder song to get into because it’s got no real beat or melody that jumps out, but when you really listen to the lyrics they are captivating. It shows his journey through heartbreak with the lyrics ‘I won’t bother you anymore, I’ll be gone this time next year’. He talks about singing a song to send you to sleep, and it almost is a lullaby (as depressing as it is). When it finishes it leaves you wanting more (and thinking about everyone that’s hurt you and all the people that have gone out of your life).

Lewis Capaldi was so in love. Is it bad to say I’m kind of glad he got his heart broken? Look what a stunning album has come out of it. One of the things I love most about this album is that it’s a reflection on a heartbreak, he did an amazing interview on the Zach Sang show (find it here) where he talked about he could only really write songs after everything had happened as a kind of therapy so he could then move on from it, and the way he writes is stunning.

He’s so descriptive in how he writes that it’s so easy to picture what’s going on in your head, he also makes it really relatable and I think that’s one of the reasons why he’s done so well. But his voice is by far out of this world and he controls it really well, being softer where he needs to be and using his raspy power voice to really make you go wow.

I actually cannot find anything wrong with this record which is phenomenal. Yes, some of his songs are slightly repetitive, but that’s one of the reasons he’s stayed at the top of the charts. He compares himself to the Scottish, male version of Adele (or Beyonce), but pretty soon (if they’re not already) people will be comparing themselves and other rising stars to him, because he’s causing a stir in the music scene.