I solemnly admit that I wasn’t an Ed Sheeran fan from the beginning. The first songs that I ever heard from Ed Sheeran were “Don’t” and “Sing” from his album X. I wasn’t a fan like my friends who went to see him live. I wasn't a fan like my friends who have all his albums downloaded from iTunes. But with his new album that came out March 3rd, there wasn’t just one specific song I liked from the album - there were many. Almost all of them, in fact.
Castle on the Hill
Probably one of my favorites from his album, "Castle on the Hill" has a strong percussive upbeat rhythm that makes it sound like an anthem for going back to the glory days when we took risks. Those risks led to dangerous decisions where we simply were too careless to worry about the future.
The lyrics “Take me back to when we found weekend jobs and we got paid, we’d buy cheap spirits and drink them straight, me and my friends have not thrown up in so long oh how we’ve grown can’t wait to go home,” just hit you with nostalgia.
This is the song that I’d picture playing in the background of my high school reunion in 5 years when I gather around with all my high school friends.
New Man
The jealous boyfriend song, or the song about the friend-zoned best friend. The song starts off with a rather piercing rap that points to the flaws of this “new man” before transitioning a fluid chorus, where it seems that the speaker is not jealous of the “New Man,” but instead is more worried about the person his friend is turning into because of this man.
Nancy Mulligan
The song is rhythmically tight and can possibly be classified as Ireland’s folk music with its fiddle (type of violin). The sharp high pitches make it sound cheerful.
I picture this song played when a man walks into a bar and sees a woman, Nancy Mulligan, and fell in love with her from first sight. From the song, it’s almost like a Romeo and Juliet version where an Irish woman marries an English man, but nothing - not even religion - stands in their being together.
Barcelona
"Barcelona" features a warm, mellow feel that transitions to a bright vibe with a flute accompanied with a guitar and percussion. The song then transitions to this jazzy rhythm played by a saxophone.
This song makes me feel like I’m in Barcelona, just having a good time taking in the warm weather and atmosphere. The first time I heard this song I thought this song would fit great in a Disney movie (or the lost soundtrack found in the Little Mermaid).
What Do I Know?
This song has chill innocent vibe with a humming included in the chorus that simply asks, “What do I know?” Simply giving the message, that he is not going to argue about topics that he doesn’t know about. Where everyone else is worried about crises, he will be singing a song about love and music.
Perfect
This should be called the "Perfect Wedding Song.” It’s the future wedding song of many, with its slow romantic gentle tempo included with the violins resonating in the background. It’s the song with which you would want to be serenaded.
Galway Girl
The combination of rap verses and a Celtic tune chorus makes this song so unique. It’s combining the traditional with the modern type of music as if was symbolizing the parallel of how “she played the fiddle in an Irish Band but she fell in love with an English man.”
I only reviewed 7 of the 16 songs on the Deluxe edition of “Divide,” but I recommend that you check out the rest, as well!
Ed Sheeran’s new album, Divide, is one that combines all different styles of music, making it easy for someone to find a song that they like!
I recommend this album to anyone who wants to listen to something new or is an Ed Sheeran fan because even I wasn’t an Ed Sheeran fan from the beginning and I just fell in love with this album because it’s perfect.
