Albums

Justin Bieber: effortlessly nimble
Gavin James: calculated earnestness

Singer/songwriter: Gavin James Bitter Pill (Good Soldier Records)

Time was when young singer-songwriters could be relied upon to express the sentiments of discontented youth: emotional volatility, political idealism and indiscriminate lust. It was also a safe bet that whichever musical style they adopted, your mother wouldn’t like it.

But that was all before ...