Ellie Goulding
Lights

The British female pop scene has recently been inundated with singer-songwriters and experimenters who, with the push of critics and bloggers, have found success both in the official charts and in so-called 'alternative' circles.

The path to worldwide success for the songwriter in question, the twenty-three-year-old Ellie Goulding, is no different from that of Bat for Lashes, Florence + The Machine, Kate Nash, Little Boots: the latter, in fact, received the same BBC critics' award in 2009 that this year our Ellie has received. A completely unexpected award, as she was only known for a demo with 5 or 6 tracks released for NME a few months earlier, without having an album ready. However, the singer had already made a name for herself on the web, like so many before her, through MySpace, making early fans and critics cry miracle.

Indeed, listening to the demo, it's impossible not to be fascinated by Goulding's compositional style, some of whose vocal virtuosos verisimilarly recall those of the Icelandic Bjork. Her songs reveal a folk, acoustic soul, contaminated by electronic beats (very much in vogue lately) that are never intrusive, light, and very sophisticated (thanks to producer Starsmith and, in some instances, Frankmusik). 'Wish I Stayed' is emblematic in this sense: acoustic guitar riffs, a simple and pure pop melody supported by a synthetic beat perfect for the structure of the song. Whether it's all her own doing cannot be said, but it is certain that Frankmusik's hand helped her greatly.

But let's come to 2010: after winning the Brit Award critics' choice, the highly anticipated 'Lights' comes out in March, the first album of originals containing ten tracks. The result, despite the initial moments of euphoria that can arise from easy melodies and catchy electropop rhythms, is rather disappointing. The ten tracks, despite some episodes, sound flat and predictable, without a minimum of versatility, based on tired and worn melodies that recall the most conventional pop. Much was expected from her, given that many pearls emerged from the demo, especially covers (like Roscoe or The Wolves, both acoustic), which of course found no space among the originals, seemingly aimed purely at satisfying an audience hungry for 'easy listening' and not at all intended to appreciate something slightly more elaborate and studied. Despite everything, however, in some pieces, Ellie still manages to convince, such as in the opening of 'Guns + Horses' and the final 'Salt Skin', where finally the experience with electronics offers its first justification. The real problem with this album seems to be this eternal antithesis between Goulding's folk and acoustic soul, which tries but fails to assimilate into the electronic and synthetic demands proposed by the producer Starsmith: it is a combination that, instead of producing something new, unintentionally falls into the least demanding easy listening possible.

In short, an album that flows pleasantly, a very unpretentious pop adorned with experimentation attempts, but that will hardly remain in the memory of any 'attentive' listener. Hoping that it is only a mistake due to the haste to please the masses, it would be a shame for such talent to vanish into the hunger of the mainstream.