James Blunt – in life, style and demeanor – stands as the perfect antithesis of what could be called the “modern rock star.” With international sales of 18 million records, however, such a statement might be considered quite the paradox.
Blasting onto the music scene behind the massive success of “You’re Beautiful,” James Blunt has toured the world, as well as the contours of his soul. The abrupt and wide-ranging musical and thematic changes on his first two albums, Back to Bedlam and All the Lost Souls, represent the internal and external influences that came to shape his personal and professional lives. Some Kind of Trouble represents a bright, new chapter.
On January 18, 2011, Some Kind of Trouble will find its way to the United States via Custard and Atlantic Records. In the midst of a promotional campaign for this milestone album, James Blunt managed to squeeze some time out of his busy schedule and settle down for an interview with Clayton Perry – reflecting on his Kosovo experience, the influence of Linda Perry and the inspiration he has found on the Spanish island of Ibiza.
In your most-recent press release, you noted that you viewed your first two albums as a pair of bookends – action and reaction. So when you look back on the recording experience for Some Kind of Trouble, what immediate thoughts come to mind?
The reason I thought about the bookend thing is because my first album – [Back to Bedlam] – had a naïve innocence to it, and then the second was the opposite of that. It was much darker, and you can tell by the album title, All the Lost Souls. Then I closed the door on that. I took some time to hang out with friends and live a normal life. This third album for me is magic, because it's regained some of that innocence, some of the excitement that a teenager might have. And the recording process, for me the memories of that will really be working in such close conjunction with my producer, Steve Robson; because I would go in there every day, tell him what I've been up to, discuss those things out loud about what's going on, and we would sit down and write a song that moment, record a demo that afternoon, work it up a little bit more the day after. The two of us have sat in the same room together for over twelve months. His wife is probably pretty jealous of the time we've spent together! [laughing] We've become quite a bit close, and the result is something that we love.
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