Raleigh Ritchie’s third album Dead Ends and Diversions is an incredible record, demonstrating Ritchie’s experimental music style and vocal mastery.
The highly anticipated album, released on 26th July, consists of eight previously unreleased songs, as well as five live performances from his O2 show for his debut album, You’re a Man Now, Boy.
The first two tracks, ‘Love is Dumb’ and ‘Security’ dropped as singles earlier this year, and are easy to listen on repeat for hours. ‘Love is Dumb’ showcases Ritchie’s beautiful vocals, reflecting on the addictive and paradoxical nature of love in youth, and has such memorable beats that it feels like an instant classic.
‘Security’ is a more sombre track, with the artist pondering vulnerability and emotional turmoil, asking “Everybody dies, everybody feels pain so why do I feel so weird?” The impactful pre-chorus ends on the lines “I just want to be alright / This can’t be the only place / This can’t be thе place I die”, before the chorus begs for security in a constantly changing world. The final verse is perhaps the best part of the track, as Ritchie reflects on his more secure childhood, stating “I was never afraid that I was growing insane that I was with my own brain”. His lyrical openness is a constant within his discography, and ‘Security’ is such an excellently produced example of his emotionally impactful music.
The next track, ‘No Rain’, quickly grows on you after a few listens. The uniquely experimental production is a treat, and the lyrics are uplifting and beautiful: “And I’m pushing away, pushing away and I cower / When I wake, fresh new slate / Seeds to flowers”.
‘Hyperventilating’ is a standout track, with its pounding beats and catchy chorus keeping the song stuck in your head, whilst the vulnerable lyrics discussing Ritchie’s struggles with anxiety (“I can’t get no rest now / I am breaking, hyperventilating”) illustrate his remarkable honesty and openness. Ritchie has always been incredibly forthright about his struggles with mental health, which makes his songs feel so relatable and authentic on a deeper level. The song ends with Ritchie repeating the chorus as it becomes more distorted, his voice cracking as he sings, perfectly reflecting the themes of the song.
‘iLie’ is another incredible track lyrically. It initially appears more upbeat, with Ritchie’s witty wordplay on full display: “Stole a KitKat once, I was young and dumb / Kicked a real cat once, uh sorry mum / Hope I get kicked back by a cat / Kidnapped by a KitKat”. The final 30 seconds of the song transition into a powerful confessional about the artist’s difficulty to admit to struggling. Ritchie is admirably honest and self-reflective, singing “Knowing I was wrong / But knowing there’s no shame in it”, and ending the track with the reassuring and heartfelt lines: “So if you feel bad, you feel low, you feel blue / Remember something, you’re not alone / Me too”.
The next track, ‘Happy Hour’, is an addictive listen. The intense drum beat, which only pauses to allow the chorus to fully shine, feeds into the frenzied tone of the song, and Ritchie’s vocals are a standout, particularly the line “All these empty glasses staring at me, laughing / In my face”, a hard-hitting and beautifully sung aspect of the chorus.
‘Above and Below (Rough and Ready Version)’ is intense and powerful in its production, with a pounding bass throughout, and a thoughtfully beautiful piano chord repetition as Ritchie repeats the lines “Luck’s got nothing to do with it / Faith’s got nothing to do with it” and the song draws to a close. It is a beautiful and tender song about letting go of one’s problems to be with the person you love, seemingly dedicated to Ritchie’s wife, Aisling Loftus.
The final studio-produced song, ‘Bad Place’, is a joy to listen to, with the artist mainly rapping throughout. Originally produced as part of the soundtrack for the 2015 motion picture Just Jim, its upbeat, trippy feel and rapid-fire lyrics perfectly matches the tone of the movie. The lively and experimental production, infused with an almost trip-hop element, adds sonic variety to the album in the best way possible.
The live performances show off Ritchie’s vocal prowess, as he somehow enhances the songs beyond their already remarkable studio performances. His incredibly popular track, ‘Stronger Than Ever’, is astonishing to listen to, with the live version feeling so much more powerful alongside the incredible string section and electric guitar accompaniment. His vocal riffs on the final chorus are genuinely breathtaking, and the live performance may have surpassed my love for the original song. ‘Stay Inside’ is also a standout, deepening the listener’s appreciation of the original track through his improvisational vocals and the addition of the excellent brass section.
Ritchie called the album “a collection of songs that never quite found their place” in his Instagram post, but his fans are extremely grateful they found their way into his official discography.
Ritchie’s music is the perfect mixture of lyrically vulnerable and instrumentally rapturous, and Dead Ends and Diversions is a deeply impactful demonstration of his honest and powerful songwriting.
Words by Emily Nutbean
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