Single Review: Olly Murs – ‘Wrapped Up’
2 min readThese days it’s rare for a talent show contestant to last as long as Olly. He somehow clings on to his fame through his cheeky chapiness and penchant for a catchy, happy tune that has you nodding along within seconds. New single Wrapped Up fits these criteria to a tee, with Olly taking on a pop funk sound and working his magic with a winning smile and a flick of the trilby hat.
Taken from forthcoming album Never Been Better, Olly may not be breaking new ground here, but he knows what he does well and is sticking to his guns. Sounding like 80s era Michael Jackson with a funky twist, Wrapped Up has seductive melodies high on the feel good and easy listening for anyone. The lyrics aren’t amazing, but for a song like this it doesn’t matter; the sound of Olly’s tailored and layered vocals are all that matters and they are on good form throughout.
Travie McCoy puts in a decent shift, filling out the track and making a perfect, if somewhat predictable rap verse which wraps up the single in a nice tight bow. Although this all sounds good, the problem with Wrapped Up is it feels tampered with. There’s no invention and its as if it’s just come off some sort of production line of meddling individuals making an inoffensive piece of music that is tailored for everyone.
It’s a solid effort, but with Olly being around for so long now, in order for him to progress, he’s got to a stage now where he needs to think outside the box a little and take matters into his own hands. I’m sure the track will do well, but it would be nice to see if Olly has something else up his sleeve, and I’m hoping the new LP will showcase something a little different.