Ben Pratt’s ‘Reflections’ is a sombre, solemn, and soothing EP. The five part collection of loving ballads from the Stoke-On-Trent based singer-songwriter are a testament to Pratt’s own vocal range and dexterity but also his sincerity, honesty, and his melodic sensibilities. The record is imbued with a sense of majestic scale, where each song scales and builds with increasing emotional depth and vigour. On the titular and opening piece itself, Pratt is able to use just a piano and his own increasingly growing scale of vocals to completely break you down. It’s a heart-warming record as much as it is heart-wrenching.
While ‘Reflections’ might be the album kicking it off with something painful and hurtful, ‘By My Side’ turns the wheel into a style that’s a bit more positive and heart-warming. It’s a simple declaration of love, one that highlights everything your lover means to you. At the heart of the record are two things really, Pratt’s powerful vocals that continually move from the more subdued to the roaring and his piano that adds the setting to each performance. ‘Ordinary People’ highlights the crippling feeling of realising that a relationship isn’t meant to be. It’s perhaps the most poignant piece on the entire record, detailing that emotional connection you’ve had breaking down as you slowly realise that it just wasn’t to be. It’s painful, but it’s not aggressive. A more resigned acceptance, ‘Ordinary People’ is perhaps the record at its most sombre and pained. That maudlin agony is immediately relatable.
A singer-songwriter record in the truest sense, ‘Reflections’ is a perfect listen for anyone going through heartbreak or hardship, just looking for a man’s voice and his instrument of choice to guide you down an emotional journey.