Brightest Blue

by Ellie Goulding

Overview

Coming off her expertly produced pop extravaganza Delirium, English singer/songwriter Ellie Goulding was exhausted and jaded. After a pair of deeply intimate releases that preceded it, that 2015 set brought her international mainstream success but sacrificed her voice. Five years later, Goulding returned with her fourth album, Brightest Blue, a powerful reclamation of self that recaptures the simplicity of her debut and the vulnerability of Halcyon. A double album of sorts, the primary statement has growth and maturity at its core. Atop production that incorporates lush R&B textures and atmospheric electronics, Goulding unloads half-a-decade of personal catharsis onto these tracks, finding comfort in her own skin on the hypnotic "Ode to Myself," coming to grips with time and her decade as a stealthy hitmaker in the music business on the powerful piano-backed "Woman," and ultimately finding peace on the rousing orchestral closer "Brightest Blue." Meanwhile, on the minimalist dance bop "Tide," she channels the xx and Frou Frou while celebrating the thrills of new love. Her admiration of Imogen Heap continues with the woozy interlude "Wine Drunk," which adopts similar vocal distortion as she opines on a bad relationship ("Bleach" and "How Deep Is Too Deep" further detail that pain and heartbreak). Additional highlights on this ethereal journey include the neon synth-dream pop of "Power" -- which interpolates Dua Lipa's "Be the One" to great effect -- and the show-stopping "Love I'm Given," a rapturous dose of soul that pushes Goulding's vocals to new limits as a gospel choir backs her cries. On a second disc dubbed "EG.0," Goulding -- still aware of her position as a pop star -- cannily provides a batch of radio-friendly fare for fans in need of a quick dose of serotonin, tacking on collaborations with blackbear, Lauv, Diplo, Swae Lee, and Juice WRLD. The separation is smart, providing extra tidbits for anyone in search of "Delirium Ellie" while locking its focus on the impact of the substance found on the more rewarding main album. Brightest Blue's main disc is Goulding's deepest emotional journey yet, a triumph of empowerment and self-discovery. ~ Neil Z. Yeung

Product Details

Release Date:	07/17/2020
Label:	Interscope / Polydor
UPC:	0602508864599
Rank:	157943

Tracks

Disc 1

1. Start
2. Power
3. How Deep Is Too Deep
4. Cyan
5. Love I¿¿¿m Given
6. New Heights
7. Ode To Myself
8. Woman
9. Tides
10. Wine Drunk
11. Bleach
12. Flux
13. Brightest Blue

Disc 2

14. Overture
15. Worry About Me
16. Slow Grenade
17. Close To Me
18. Hate Me

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Ellie Goulding   Primary Artist,Guitar,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Blackbear   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Swae Lee   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Lauv   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
serpentwithfeet   Primary Artist,Vocals,Keyboards,Featured Artist
Juice WRLD   Primary Artist,Vocals,Featured Artist
Diplo   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
James Wyatt   Primary Artist,Piano,Strings,Piano,Strings
Ben Chappell   Cello
Bob Knight   Strings,Choir/Chorus
Annie Beilby   Viola
Peter Svensson   Guitar
Jamie Scott   Guitar,Keyboards,Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Savan Kotecha   Piano,Vocals (Background)
Jason Evigan   Guitar
Sam Thompson   Piano,Conductor,Piano,Conductor
Nicky Brown   Piano,Conductor,Choir Conductor
Max Cooke   Piano,Keyboards
Katherine Jenkinson   Cello
Jim Eliot   Piano,Keyboards
Elizabeth Cooney   Violin
Richard Harwood   Cello
Nina Foster   Violin
James Brett   Conductor
Hilary Skewes   Conductor
Timothy Grant   Viola
Beatrix Lovejoy   Violin
Jenny Sacha   Violin
Matthew Denton   Violin
Thomas Gould   Violin
Oscar Goerres   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Starsmith   Piano,Guitar,Keyboards,Saxophone,Percussion,Synthesizer
Becky Thomas   Conductor,Choir Conductor
Joe Clegg   Percussion
Kotono Sato   Viola
Mike Wise   Bass,Drums,Organ,Piano,Guitar,Synthesizer,Guitar (Bass)
Ciaran McCabe   Violin
Jason Klauber   Guitar
Patrick Wimberly   Bass,Drums,Vocals,Keyboards,Guitar (Bass)
John Myerscough   Cello
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Vocals,Keyboards,Percussion,Bass (Vocal),Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Claudia Ajmone-Marsan   Violin
Emma Denton   Cello
Mandhira De Saram   Violin
Ashok Klouda   Cello
Daniel Pioro   Violin
Jonny Coffer   Bass,Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Bass (Vocal)
Rowan McIntosh   Guitar (Acoustic)
Eoin Schmidt-Martin   Viola
Michelle Fleming   Violin
Joe Kearns   Bass,Drums,Piano,Keyboards,Percussion,Synthesizer,Guitar (Bass)
Meghan Cassidy   Viola
Magdalena Filipczak   Violin
Antonia Kesel   Violin
Martyn Jackson   Violin
Eloisa-Fleur Thom   Violin
Natalie Klouda   Violin
Zach Bines   Vocals,Spoken Word
Laurie Anderson   Viola
Raja Halder   Violin
Ariel Lang   Violin
Eli Teplin   Bass,Organ,Piano,Synthesizer,Synthesizer Bass
ILYA   Drums,Guitar,Keyboards,Percussion,Guitar (Bass),Vocals (Background)
Mylo Kotecha   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Leo Kotecha   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
The Music Confectionery Choir   Choir/Chorus
Will Brown   Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)

Technical Credits

Serban Ghenea   Mixing
Andy Cook   Engineer,Recording,Assistant Engineer
David Paich   Composer
John Hanes   Mixing,Engineer,Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
David Wrench   Mixing,Programming
Nick Taylor   Engineer
Manny Marroquin   Mixing
Matt Pauling   Remix Engineer
Diplo   Engineer,Producer,Programming
Peter Svensson   Composer
Jamie Scott   Composer,Producer,Drum Programming
Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson   Engineer
Savan Kotecha   Composer
Chris Galland   Mixing Engineer
Jason Evigan   Composer,Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer,Instrumentation
Max Cooke   Arranger,Composer,Producer,String Arrangements,Additional Production
Andrew Wotman   Composer
Michelle Mancini   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Chris Stracey   Composer
Ellie Goulding   Composer
Jim Eliot   Composer,Producer,Programming,Additional Production
Sam Holland   Engineer
Randy Merrill   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Adam Miller   Engineer
Hilary Skewes   Contractor,Contracting,String Contractor
Jonathan Wimberly   Composer
Matt Colton   Mastering,Mastering Engineer
Alvaro   Producer,Additional Production
Jordan Johnson   Composer
Ian Kirkpatrick   Producer
Olivia Williams   Choir Arrangement,Vocal Arrangement
Jason Elliott   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Recording,Additional Production
Oscar Goerres   Composer,Producer,Programming
Forest Swords   Producer,Additional Production
Starsmith   Producer,Programming,Drum Programming,Additional Production
Becky Thomas   Choir Arrangement
Josiah Wise   Composer
Thomas Wesley Pentz   Composer
Simon Gooding   Assistant,Mixing Assistant
Jamie Snell   Mixing
Jack Tarrant   Composer
Finlay Dow Smith   Composer
Stefan Johnson   Composer
Mike Wise   Producer,Programming,Synthesizer Programming
Patrick Wimberly   Engineer,Producer,Programming,Additional Production
Ilya Salmanzadeh   Arranger,Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer,Keyboard Arrangements
Lucy Taylor   Composer
Marcus Lomax   Composer
Josef Gomez   Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Matthew Musto   Composer
Jonathan Coffer   Composer
Brett McLaughlin   Composer
James Wyatt   Arranger,Composer,Engineer,Producer,Programming,Orchestration,String Arrangements
Grace Banks   Mixing Assistant
Jonny Coffer   Composer,Producer,Programming,Drum Programming
Luke Gibbs   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Strangerz   Producer,Vocal Producer,Instrumentation
The Monsters   Producer,Vocal Producer,Instrumentation
Cory Brice   Assistant Engineer
Rowan McIntosh   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
The Monsters & Strangerz   Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer
Joe Kearns   Composer,Engineer,Producer,Recording,Programming,Vocal Engineer,Vocal Producer,Keyboard Arrangements
Fred Gibson   Composer,Producer
Khalif Brown   Composer
Tobias Jesso, Jr.   Composer
Swae Lee   Engineer
Martin Hannah   Engineer
Nick Gale   Composer
Jeremy Lertola   Assistant Engineer
Rachel Keen   Composer
Mathew Scheiner   Recording
Robin Florent   Assistant
Randy Lanphear   Engineer,Recording,Mixing Engineer,Mixing Assistant
Kane Brown   Composer
Brittany Hazzard   Composer
Beau Blaise   Programming
Ari Leff   Composer
Bas Van Daalen   Producer,Programming,Additional Production
Gian Stone   Vocal Producer
Olly Thompson   Assistant Engineer
Scott Desmarais   Assistant
Manny Park   Engineer,Assistant Engineer
Andrew Watman   Composer
Jarad Higgins   Composer
Eli Teplin   Composer,Producer
ILYA   Engineer,Producer,Programming,Vocal Producer,Keyboard Arrangements
Mark Knight   Assistant Engineer
Bob Knight   Vocal Arrangement
Jonathan Wise   Composer