Andy Smythe is a singer and a multi-instrumental powerhouse. The versatile artist writes the songs and brings them to life laying down the guitar, bass, and sax parts himself. He utilizes all of his talents to protest, tackling the financial difficulties young Britons face after Brexit when trying to marry and bring their EU partner to live in the UK.

While the specific issue of post-Brexit marriage regulations might not resonate everywhere, “Love Ain’t Free” speaks to a universal truth: love shouldn’t come with a price tag. Smythe’s powerful lyrics lament the obstacles that make love anything but free, asking frustrated questions like “What ever happened to liberty, free speech, and dignity?” The audacity of imposing a tax on love itself is a theme that transcends borders.

Despite its angry core, the song explodes with a surprisingly upbeat soundscape. This musical protest is fueled not just by anger, but by a vibrant love that refuses to be silenced. Smythe’s vocals lead the charge with a passionate yet graceful delivery, while the music provides a counterpoint of hope. Light, feathery guitar riffs dance alongside a free-spirited saxophone, Beatrice Limonti, who plays in Smythe’s live band, brings a cheerful delight with her skillful fiddle. It’s a musical paradox that perfectly embodies the frustration of young love battling against bureaucratic hurdles.  

“Love Ain’t Free” below is a joyous celebration of love refusing to be extinguished by suppression.

Andy Smythe, based in London, is attempting to start a Britpop renaissance. With his latest album ‘Poetry in Exile’ Smythe is attempting to explore relationships and our collective struggle to maintain our mental health in a post-pandemic landscape. Painting a grim, dark, and introspective atmosphere throughout the album, Smythe is also keeping an optimistic edge that there is good to still be gained from this, and ‘Don’t Be a Fool’ might very well be the album’s lightest moment, displaying this hope in its most potent.

With Smythe’s distinctive, nasal voice, and its duet with a lush-sounding harp that wails in glee throughout the song, his straightforward lyrics strike a chord with anyone who thought that life would be the same post-Covid. With a driving, rock-solid groove, bittersweet chords, and synth arpeggios, a strong base is built in support of the cacophonous voice/harmonica leads.

A calculated song that’s the product of a songwriting veteran who has a very good way with words, arrangements, and instilling feelings in listeners. ‘Don’t Be a Fool’ is a beautiful song with a sound that’s equal parts sad and jubilant.

Third single out of Andy Smythe’s Poetry in Exile, ‘Leaves to Burn’ follows two standout singles that mix jangly arrangements with sophisticated pop soundscapes, ‘Prodigal Sons’ and ‘Out of My Mind’. The third single is one more showcase of the wide range of Smythe’s sonic palette, coming with one more distinct sound.

The London-based singer and songwriter has an instrument-heavy approach to arranging his bustling songs. Starting with a snappy, syncopated percussion part, the song soon introduces its hearty vocals, stadium-sized organs, buoyant bass, and crispy, overdriven lead guitars. The song’s liveliness comes akin to some of Oasis’s unforgettable anthems, and so do the song’s approachable chord sequences, that veer a little bit off in the choruses, introducing a balance between the cozy timidness of the verses, and a slight sense of tension with a pair of unexpected chord tonalities.

Pure pop rock, ‘Leaves to Burn’ is a dense and utterly enjoyable experience of a song by Andy Smythe, a writer of mature songs and weighted lyrics, who is surely gaining a reputation as being a reliable musician whose songs seem to always have a sense of sophistication that makes them stand out. ‘Leaves to Burn’ stands out with its gently cacophonous tapestry of instruments, and with its profound lyrics about rural farm life and its mental health implications, inspired by Smythe’s childhood. A rich song that rocks while provoking unusual thoughts.