Review
Sam Fender's 'People Watching' is the kind of album that makes you feel like you're eavesdropping on someone's life story at a bar - intimate, raw, and occasionally uncomfortable in the best way possible. His third studio outing took nearly three years to craft, and honey, it shows. The eleven tracks bounce between stadium-ready anthems like the title track 'People Watching' and more vulnerable moments, all while maintaining his signature working-class storytelling. It's like he's been studying at the Bruce Springsteen School of Making Regular Life Sound Epic, but with a distinctly British twist.
The production on this album is cleaner than his previous work, yet still has enough grit to sand down a park bench. You can hear influences from collaborator Adam Granduciel without Fender losing his own identity in the process. 'TV Dinner' dives into the weirdness of fame with a self-awareness that's refreshing in an era of celebrity naval-gazing, while tracks like 'Crumbling Empire' and 'Chin Up' deliver the emotional punch of Oasis but with actual substance behind the swagger. His storytelling has definitely leveled up here.
That brass section on the closer 'Remember My Name' had me feeling things I wasn't emotionally prepared for on a Tuesday afternoon. What makes 'People Watching' special is how Fender manages to balance his hometown roots with his expanding musical horizons. There's a confidence in these tracks that suggests an artist who's figured out exactly who he is and what he wants to say. The mix of heartland rock urgency and Britpop attitude creates something that feels both timeless and perfectly timed for 2025. Sam's clearly watching people, but now everyone's watching him too. - Chloe
