9. March 2025
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Media Review

Passenger – Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted

Florian Buechtingby Florian Buechting

Passenger - Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted

Passenger - Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted
4.3

Rating

 4.3/5

Flyctory.com Pros

  • Lovely written songs
  • Very present voice
  • Feels very familiar from the very first second

Flyctory.com Cons

  • No song connects to his big hits

Passenger had a massive hit in 2012, which lead to billions of streams. Even though the solo artist could not keep up with this success, he is still a very well reputed and successful artist. His latest album release will be Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted, which is published digitally and physically on 8th January 2021.

Passenger – About The Artists

Michael David Rosenberg, known as Passenger, was born on 17th May 1984 in Brighton, United Kingdom. Passenger was originally a folk band’s name, which has been active from 2003 to 2009 and released two albums, the 2007 Wicked Man’s Rest and the 2009 Wide Eyes Blind Love. After the break-up of the band, Rosenberg adopted the name for his solo project. While the first two albums did not lead to noticeable commercial success, the 2010 Flight of the Crow received a golden record in Australia. All the Little Lights, his 2012 album, lead to an international breakthrough, majorly driven by Let Her Go, which topped the charts in numerous countries, for example Australia, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland and New Zealand. The song has some three billion streams on YouTube and more than one billion on Spotify. Even though Passenger stayed a one-hit-wonder on the singles side, he stayed successful with album. For example, his 2016 Young as the Morning Old as the Sea topped the charts in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland. Songs for the Drink and Broken Hearted will be Rosenberg’s twelth solo album.

Passenger – Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted – Track by Track

The album contains twenty tracks. In fact, there are ten songs – after that these songs are repeated as acoustic versions in reverse order. The total playing time of the original versions (first ten tracks) is 36 minutes. Interesting fact:  Passenger is collaborating with a charity which is planting a tree for each phyiscal unit of the album sold.

1. Sword From The Stone

I have to admit that I haven’t followed Passenger the last years. Still, his voice is that present from the Let Her Go days that Sword From The Stone feels familiar, reliable. The song itself feels fragile – but also cozy and beautiful. Enjoy to listen to it.

‘Cos I’m fine and then I’m not
I’m spinning ‘round and I can’t stop
I can’t do this alone
For time flies then it’s so slow
I’m up and down like a yoyo
I can’t do it on my own
And I’ve tried and I can’t pull the sword from the stone

2. Tip Of My Tongue

Tip of My Tongue comes with a quite happy-mood melody (especially keyboard tunes) and a certain vocal concentration. I love the presence of Passenger’s voice, also as it is quite characteristic – you just hold and listen to the stories he is telling to you. Beautiful.

3. What You’re Waiting For

If this aint enough then I don’t know what you’re waiting for
Is it money is it love is it something but you’re just not sure
Well I don’t know what you’re hoping to find
But a happy heart and a peaceful mind
And if this aint enough then I don’t know what you’re waiting for
I just don’t know what you’re waiting for

With songs between 2:40 and 3:20 minutes, the first section of the album is very fast-paced and versatile. I felt a bit sad about it when I was listening to What You’re Waiiting For. The song is such a beauty talking about never being really happy in your life and still longing for more, even though you already achieved pretty much. But it is just 2:37 minutes. Just when I started to love it, it is done… Time for the repeat button.

4. The Way That I Love You

How many times can I tell you
You’re lovely just the way you are
Don’t let the world come and change you
Don’t let life break your heart
Don’t put on their mask, don’t wear their disguise
Don’t let them dim the light that shines in your eyes
If only you could love yourself the way that I love you

The first four songs of the album are not just short and versatile – they are especially beautiful. The Way That I Love You is such a lovely listen – in an intimate atmosphere.

5. Remember To Forget

Remember To Forget is a song with a radio touch – I personally feel it does not connect too well to the first four tracks, though. You might also say it adds a very new character, a new flavor.

 

6. Sandstorm

With five minutes duration, Sandstorm is the longest track on Songs for the Drunk and Broken-Hearted. 

Lover oh my lover
I know I’m not easy to understand
Cover darling take cover
For I am the sandstorm
And you are the sand

A very intimate, minimalist track, which is so good in just taking you on a travel into its story. Love to take a break and just listen to Rosenberg.

7. A Song For The Drunk and Broken Hearted

An intuitive melody, the characteristic voice of Rosenberg – the title track of the album is just a good listen. I love the metaphoric, picturesque way the artist is describing the scenery of the song, which is dealing with the break-up of his relation.

Sweet Sunday afternoon, September’s golden brown
Summer always fades too soon like the laughter of a clown
Shadows fill the room where sorrows come to drown
Your heart’s a late bloom as you sink another one down

8. Suzanne

The Passenger lyric videos on YouTube are really a treat. You don’t just get the original English words, he is also adding five translations on top of it. That’s European customer service. The song Suzanne itself is one of the most lovely recordings on the album. Love to listen to Passenger, who is again creating an intimate atmosphere – you just have to listen to his story about that special lady.

9. Nothing Aches Like A Broken Heart

Nothing Aches Like A Broken Heart feels a bit of similar to Tip Of My Tongue to me. The melody is driven by the drums and the piano, but finally just turn into background when Rosenberg’s voice is sounding. Not my favorite track of the album, but indeed a good listen.

10. London In The Spring

London In The Spring is the last song of the album (and the first song of the acoustic section thereafter). A love song to the British capital, which does not need any chorus, just describes feelings – and does it in a lovely way:

Well some people tell me
I’ve better things to do
And more productive ways that
I could spend my time
But I’m not sure I agree
It often seems to me we
Spend our lives, talkin’ foolish, runnin’ blind
And we forget how to enjoy the simple things
Like walkin’ through London in the Spring

 

Passenger – Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted – Spotify

Here is the Spotify widget to the album:

 

Passenger – Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted – My View

Is there another Let her Go on the album? No! Will Songs For The Drunk And Broken Hearted boost Passenger back to the very tops of the charts? Unfortunately likely not. The album is too unremarkable, not special enough to bring Michael Rosenberg back to the musical spheres he belongs to. That does not mean at all that it is a bad album. I loved to listen to it and I feel it is really great. I just doubt that it is an engine which is boosting the size of his fanbase. That’s really sad, as the ten songs illustrate that the artist is a lovely and empathetic songwriter. At least he grew his fanbase. By adding me – and hopefully some of my readers. Top Pick! album to me.

 

 

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