REVIEW: Sting, 'The Last Ship' [STREAM]

His first solo album in a decade, The Last Ship is quite a departure from Sting's usual rock ballads. The album is actually the soundtrack to the upcoming musical of the same name, set to hit Broadway about a year from now.

The songs (and the story behind the musical) were inspired by Sting's childhood growing up in a shipbuilding community in the Tyneside region of North East England. The story centers on a man, Gideon Fletcher, from the seafaring town of Wallsend in the 1980s. Despite taking place thousands of miles and three decades away, the story seems relatable to what's happening in today's economy with the recession and certain industries dying out — making what would seem like a bizarre idea for a musical a potentially great story.

The 17-track album more or less chronicles the rise and fall of the shipbuilding industry in the region. From illuminating the expectation of a son taking up the same job as his father before him ("Dead Man's Boots") to lamenting the loss of a lover after years at sea ("I Love Her But She Loves Someone Else") to deciding when to call it quits on after a full, if not harsh, life ("So To Speak"), the album does manage to tell a colorful story of quotidian life in this region.

The opening track, "The Last Ship" sets the overall theme of the album. It speaks of the last ship as a metaphor for death, using a mix of the biblical and nautical imagery. The following tracks become more literal in relation to the story's plot and have a more theatrical feel which could easily be translatable on stage.

"And Yet" departs from the exaggerated, Geordie-accented melodies of the record with a jazzy, funk song that could fit outside the musical's soundtrack. It's one of the only songs that could stand alone outside the context of the story.

It remains to be seen if the album alone will resonate without the backing musical, which only contains three-fourths of the album's material (or even if the musical itself will resonate); but all in all, the record is well rounded, full of imagery and definitely worth a listen.

Stream the album free on Spotify, and let us know what you think in the comments section below!

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Sting