Review Summary: We've been expecting you too.
It was clear from his first solo album that Robbie Williams had managed to surpass
Take That.
Life Thru a Lens had it all: adolescent recklessness, punkish zeal, a well-executed emulation of the Gallagher brothers, airy ballads, and great melodies. The wildly popular
Angels remains to this day one of the brightest signature songs of the scandalous and talented artist. It can also be stated that Robbie’s first three albums not only outshone his former bandmates, but made his name famous and recognizable around the world as a solo artist.
I’ve Been Expecting You uses the same approach as the debut. It’s a collection of good and great songs across different genres and topical content, all of the highest quality. If one wants to nitpick, the criticism would likely target the approach itself, since the album lacks overall coherence. However, let’s be honest: without solid material, any coherence, conceptuality, and the like would be useless. So, we will put all that aside for now.
What has always made Robbie stand out is the seeming effortlessness (sometimes even casual abandonment) with which he creates and performs his songs. Equally effective and unaffected are his satirical, self-deprecating view of his pleasure-seeking lifestyle (
Strong), mature reflections on self-delusion after a heartbreak (
No Regrets), the total indifference of a losing leader (
Jesus in the Camper Van), or the peaceful tenderness of two lovers (
Heaven from Here). Add in the immensely talented Guy Chambers (representing one of the most successful and long-running songwriter-producer-musician partnerships) and a vibrant source of fresh musical ideas, and we get a work that is a pure pleasure to listen to and relisten to, singing along just like it’s the first time you heard it.
It is this tunefulness and captured sensitivity that form the basis of his success. There is no need to listen too attentively to the aforementioned
No Regrets – the song immediately gets under your skin and cuts right through you.
Win Some Lose Some is yet another confirmation that genius lies in simplicity, both musical and lyrical.
“She touched my face and called me her lover / I never thought that I'd need another” so clearly describes a first love that is pure, naïve, and all-consuming.
These Dreams alternates between dreamy tranquility and mystical anxiety before the song dissolves into comforting lines (
“You've got tomorrow tomorrow…”) as the album winds down (though it still holds hidden tracks in the atmospheric
Stand Your Ground and the somewhat giddy
Stalker’s Day Off). And those who prefer hard-hitting and energetic cuts get
Karma Killer and
Man Machine, which – for all their straightforward, cookie-cutter nature – act as interesting detours into the burgeoning alternative rock territory.
At the dawn of his solo career, Robbie Williams pleasantly surprised listeners at every turn, cementing his status as one of the most successful and talented contemporary singers with his subsequent releases. With mixed results at times, perhaps, but certainly not today.
