Posted: Sunday 3rd August 2008

Every year certain artists are handpicked to be the subject of hype. Natty is one such artist and after being championed by BBC Introducing, the singer-songwriter seems destined for great things. Having released two singles so far, Cold Town and July, Natty hasn’t quite cracked the charts yet but that could be about to change with the release of debut album Man Like I.

Man Like I is a collection of 12 tracks that establishes Natty as the UK’s answer to Wyclef Jean, Will.i.am and Bob Marley all rolled into one. With a mostly acoustic-based sound, Natty has developed a style that whilst nodding towards his influences, remains uniquely his own. The beautifully simple Revolution pairs Natty’s vocals with a gentle acoustic riff which contrasts greatly to the rather frantic Badman, a track that sounds like something Wyclef Jean would record. During the course of Man Like I, Natty channels acoustic-folk on Hey Man, reggae-lite on Bedroom Eyes and edges around ska on She Loves Me.

Despite Natty’s attempts to flit around genres, Man Like I isn’t as strong an album as you might expect. The album suffers from sounding a bit too samey and eventually the tracks all segue into one. The standout track is without a doubt current single July and sadly none of the other tracks on the album come close. The more stripped down material (Burn Down This Place) works better than the over-produced stuff (Last Night).

There’s no denying that Natty has natural talent but he doesn’t use it to its full capacity on Man Like I. The album doesn’t leave a massive impression which is of course a real problem in a crowded music industry. With better US contemporaries out there, natty will struggle to break the UK market unless he raises his game a little. Man Like I is a solid enough foundation but to breakthrough Natty really needs to push himself.