Ed O’Brien – Blue Morpho

What does it sound like?:

Bon-yr-Aur Grump…

Sorry couldn’t resist that. Ed (from Radiohead) has been through a difficult few years. His first solo album, the excellent Earth was released right at the start of Covid. He put together a great band to play it, and then… well. You know. Also, he seems to have fallen into a trap of putting out his first solo album as a sort of time capsule, what he would have sounded like if he’d started as a solo artist in the mid-90s. He seems to have a huge downer on that record, which is a shame, as far as I can see the only problem is that he doesn’t sound confident in his own lyrics on that one. He also faced being an internet meme, the guy who only sings his own name on Radiohead songs.

Apparently, he sunk into a deep depression, but pulled himself out of it by reconnecting with nature. He spent some time living in Wales, close to where the Led Zep chaps had their stomping ground and produced the acoustic/earthy aspect that took that band into the all time greats. That same inspiration has seeped through the soil into this record, although it probably has less LZ sounds than the last one overall. But the vibe…

I was suspicious that he was working with Paul Epworth, who seems to be one of those modern pump-it-out producers. However not the case here, this is one weird record. It has a sonic landscape full of weird echoes, jazz bass, percussion from all over the world, throat singing, and strings straight off the first two Nick Drake albums. These aren’t normal songs: they have lyrics but you can’t immediately hear them. They have structures but you don’t get it straight away. Ed’s guitar is a mix of careful fingerpicking and weird ambient soundscapes that swirl with everything else.

The songs are:

Incantations: this has a more recognisable lyric and it relates to getting back to nature and feeling things again. It has the fingerpicking to the fore.

Blue Morpho: not really a song at all, but it will be heard for years to come as music on TV shows that need a weird, naturalistic sound. The Nick Drake force is strong in this one. Ed had balls of steel to put this out as the first single. It’s quite long but you don’t notice.

Sweet Spot: trippy and vague, but it feels like lifting out of a depression.

Teachers: this is a vibe similar to Olympik off his last record, but it is more confident.

Solfeggio: There’s a point here where it is hard to tell where you are, it’s a bit like coming into a clearing in the woods. A short and intensely beautiful ambient piece – I think this is where it shows his major strength in live sound manipulation.

Thin Places: as before. Another short piece of intense beauty. Get used to this stuff, you are going to be hearing it on TV forever…

Obrigado: a more assertive rhythm than the rest of the album so far. Ed’s singing about sunny days here, and it sounds like that too. There are female backing vocals that give it a ‘Real World Presents…’ vibe. Nowt wrong with that. There’s chanting, something that sounds like a 70s string synth but is evidently under the control of a guitar. I love this one. It ends with Ed taking a solo through his pedalboard and it sounds like Pink Floyd produced by Kevin Shields.

What does it all *mean*?

This album has influences, but it transcends them. You have to respect the guy for stepping out of a very experimental band and actually taking it further, whilst sounding warm and approachable at the same time. I feel that Paul Epworth is the Tim Friese-Greene of this album. It would be amazing in surround. The cover is the only thing that I would change – it looks like it comes from the 70s for sure, but the Grumpy Ed/Happy Ed butterfly image is cack-handed and a bit silly (Ed’s happy face isn’t convincing.)

Having suffered two major depressions long ago, this feels like a warm hug from an old friend who has been there.

Goes well with…

Stomping around Bron-Yr-Aur

Release Date:

22nd May 2026

Might suit people who like…

Talk Talk, Led Zeppelin, Nick Drake, Radiohead.

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