Music Review: Emeli Sande "My Kind of Love"

Emeli Sande

My Kind of Love

Album: Our Version of Events

Year: 2012

           Emeli Sande relieves her boyfriend’s doubts of her feelings in the quiet “My Kind of Love.”

       An austere piano opens the single, setting a clearheaded tone. . She prefers to make her gifts for him. Buying him expensive cufflinks is something she can’t afford. She realizes he may not want to hear criticism from her. However, she has to be honest with him. Otherwise, she’s simply following him around, letting him lead her. She slips on the rug and sometimes forgets to take her elbows off the tables. His aides have impeccable manners and step into the hallway without bumping into the coat rack or on the stairs. She does not have unlimited funds which would allow them to travel to the States orAsiaon a whim. She also can’t say she’ll be ready for kids in six months or if ever. He may wonder if she actually cares about him. She professes he’s the person she loves. (“I can't buy your love, don't even wanna try/Sometimes the truth won't make you happy, so I'm not gonna lie/But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you/I know I'm far from perfect, nothin' like your entourage/I can't grant you any wishes, I won't promise you the stars/But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you.”)

        In the chorus, she will be there for him when he’s on the floor crying. She’ll brush the hair away from his face and hold him. She’ll be the one person who won’t desert him if he makes a career misstep. He will know the depth of her feelings. (“Cause when you've given up/When no matter what you do it's never good enough/When you never thought that it could ever get this tough/That’s when you feel my kind of love/And when you're crying out/When you fall and then can't pick, you're heavy on the ground/When the friends you thought you had haven't stuck around/That's when you feel my kind of love.”)

             He attends benefit dinners every weekend. However, she’s a homebody. She also would be uncomfortable wearing a ballgown that cost as much as her car down payment. When they are in the car, she won’t burst into song, singing along to some cheesy ballad. She gets frustrated and has a habit of taking it out on him. She yells at him to leave her alone, which she doesn’t want. She rather him stay. After several breakups, she’s become guarded and afraid to express what she feels. (“You won't see me at the parties, I guess I'm just no fun/I won't be turning up the radio singing, "Baby You're The One"/But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you/I know sometimes I get angry, and I say what I don't mean/I know I keep my heart protected, far away from my sleeve/But don't ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you.’)

          The chorus is sung once more to end the single.

        Sande’s patient vocals scrape at the rusted chains she has lugged around, trying to get them off. They have held in her emotions for too long. She’s filled with the words she want but thinks he will throw them away once she has said them. She has to get them out or fears losing him if she continues to say nothing.

        The minimalist “My Kind of Love” stands naked with emotion, revealing itself one layer at a time.