Will Young - Let it Go (RCA) ***

12:20pm Friday 3rd October 2008

THE major exception to the rule about talent show contestants and their short-lived careers, Will Young has turned in a fourth album that's loaded with crafted English soul songs and a super-smooth production from the likes of The Freemasons and Robot Club.

The title track is a lachrymose break up ballad that's sure to scorch the charts, while lead single Changes sounds like autumn in three prime pop minutes.

Lyrically, it seems Will's been hurt - been hurt bad - and like countless others before him found the pain in his heart unlocks the creative soul. Songs like Tell Me the Worst and If Love Equals Nothing will find favour with anyone left nursing a bottle and box of tissues. But perhaps the record's major achievement is moving its maker onto a higher level.