After much anticipation the Kildare pop duo Picture This (Ryan Hennessy and Jimmy Rainsford) released their self-titled debut album. Irish music fans and critics have been waiting for Picture This to release an actual album as the Athy natives soared to fame and even sold out a 3 Arena gig in just three minutes in late July even though they had only released a handful of songs.
Yet, there is nothing surprising about this album. If you are familiar with their hit single ‘Take My Hand’ the rest of the album conforms to that style. The songs are quite predictable. It definitely hits the mark for genre expectation.
The album is much like the music of popular Irish bands The Coronas and The Script. Like these bands every song on the album sounds quite similar. They know their audience, they know what they like and they use that to their advantage.
Picture This do not stray away from your typical themes throughout the album – we hear the usual tales of love and youth. Their lyrics are not overly impressive and there is nothing very unique about any of the songs.
However, ’95’ is the one song which is interesting and slightly differs from the rest. Here Hennessy sings about a girl who lives in 1995. In the chorus he sings “I held back her hair as she threw up everywhere”.
It is certainly not romantic but it is quite quirky and ventures away from some very cheesy lyrics in their other songs. There may be some inspiration taken from Ed Sheeran in this song as he is known for his very quirky and ‘out there’ lyrics.
The songs on the album can be perceived as moany and depressing, and some people’s first instinct may just be to switch it off. However, it cannot be denied that the pair work great together. Hennessy’s lead vocals are stunning and listening to this album, it is sometimes hard to remember that they are just a duo as the production is so good.
The first self-titled album is definitely easy listening and die-hard fans of the duo will certainly be thrilled with it. For those who were not captivated by the band’s fast success and popularity, Picture This falls short of anything impressive. No matter what your impression of their music is, their success and popularity, especially among young teen girls, proves that Picture This will be on the music scene for quite some time.
Ciara O’Loughlin