Originally from Liverpool, BANNERS, real name Michael Joseph Nelson, is an indie pop artist that’s spent the last seven years in Canada growing his career. I’ve just discovered his music for myself through his latest album release, All Back To Mine.

By Graeme Smith

Feature photo by Marieke Macklon

The name All Back To Mine celebrates Michael’s return to his hometown and brings with it something of a party atmosphere. The album was pulled together over nine months in the city, and on the remote Scottish isle of Lewis, and has a quintessentially British feel to it.

And we Brits do love a party, especially one tinged with a bit of drama. That’s what we get with All Back To Mine – feel-good anthems tempered with emotional depth. It’s easy to see why BANNERS is getting the attention he currently is, including TV sync placements on Suits, Teen Wolf, The Royals and New Amsterdam to name a few, as well as a notable appearance on American Idol.

The party starts with Name In Lights and we instantly get a mix of light and dark. It’s a hopeful track, but one that carries a certain doubt too. Its soaring folk pop instrumental beautifully supports Michael’s soulful and powerful vocals, and the lyrics provide an encouraging message. It’s a strong start.

Other highlights include the soul-searching and slow-burning Anywhere For You, the relatable, catchy and cathartic C’est La Vie, the rousing and romantic The Best View in Liverpool, the delicate duet with Lily Meola Perfectly Broken, and Tell You I Love You, which has a melody that fellow Liverpudlians The Beatles would have be proud of.

To celebrate the album, BANNERS will be touring the UK and Europe with the closest date to here being at Manchester’s Band On The Wall on 12 May. You can get tickets for all his tour dates via his website.

All Back To Mine is out now in all the usual places and you can give it a listen below.