Album Reviews

By now you’ve probably heard the news that Elton John has paired up with Americana crossover phenomenon Brandi Carlile on their fine new Top 10 LP Who Believes in Angels?, which was released by Rocket/EMI on April 4, 2025. Given all the advance hype, we suspect some of you fence-sitters are probably wondering how the album actually sounds on vinyl. Fortunately, I have some good things to report on this pleasantly surprising release from two of the biggest pop-music icons of our times.

As we well know, collaborative albums can often be a dicey proposition, with results that are often spotty or even disappointing. However, when it comes to a legend like Elton John and a high-profile modern superstar like Brandi Carlile, you kinda just knew upfront that there was going to be some serious attention paid to its overall quality. More on that in a moment — but, in general, I’m genuinely enjoying this new album, and I’m saying this as a lifetime Elton John fan (and a more recent fan of Carlile’s).

As far as deciphering the DNA behind Who Believes in Angels?, a bit of sleuthing was required, as specifics seem relatively under the radar. Ultimately, we had to make some inspired educated guesses — but in all likelihood, the album was probably made with some combination of analog and digital production aesthetics. There is something of an international production vibe going on here, indicating digital files were probably transferred from studio to studio, and to/from the artists, via modern interweb protocols.

Who Believes in Angels? was produced by Andrew Watt and engineered by Paul LaMalfa at Sunset Sound in Hollywood, California. The album was mixed by Serban Ghenea at MixStar Studios in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Mastering was handled by Matt Colton at Metropolis Studios in London, and the final album was manufactured in Germany (probably at Optimal). It’s worth noting that the companion Angels High Fidelity Pure Audio Blu-ray edition features a hi-res 24-bit/96kHz stereo mix, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that was what was used for making the final vinyl edition (but this is all educated guesswork).

The SRP for the Who Believes in Angels? LP is $37.99, which you can order from Music Direct via this link, or by way of the MD link graphic later in the review that appears just ahead of the tracklisting section.

At the time of this posting, Who Believes in Angels? seems to only be available in a wide range of color vinyl editions. Purple, red-yellow, and blue-white splatter variants are all available (some of which you’ll see above, and/or smattered throughout this review), but I purchased the yellow-blue-red tri-color version at Amoeba Music here in San Francisco, as it was the only option they were carrying at the time. I’ve since seen social media postings of a green version as well, and that pink-yellow pattered version looks lovely. There are even three color-variant cassette options too! (Head to the store on Elton’s official site to see/obtain some of the still-available variants and format options.) That all said, I hope a black vinyl edition will eventually be made available as well.

Given the core album was recorded at as iconic a studio as Sunset Sound, I wouldn’t be surprised if the balance of the basic tracks — drums, bass, rhythm guitars, keys — had been recorded to analog tape to capture some of that classic ’70s warmth. I checked the studio’s official site, and they do have Studer 24-track analog recorders there as well as a full Pro Tools suite. I am, again, semi-educatedly guessing at the analog possibility, because of just how good the basic band tracks sound on the Angels LP.

The crack backing band here, by the way, includes drummer Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), bassist Pino Palladino (The Who/Pete Townshend, Tears For Fears, David Gilmour), and keyboardist/synth player Josh Klinghoffer (Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers), and all of their instrumentation sounds especially clear and natural. This is a big deal for me, especially given that I’ve been underwhelmed by the overall sound of several recent albums produced by Andrew Watt, the man who helmed this new release.

That said, on Who Believes in Angels?, Watt seems to have achieved a healthy balance between creating a modern-sounding, hit-worthy pop-rock record that also carries more of a timeless feel not pinned to the pop-music aesthetics of 2025. Sonics-wise, the recording is not perfect as audiophile experiences go, but I am not hearing the sort of utterly annoying crunchy compression and overriding emphasis on certain production styles that made recent Watt productions for Pearl Jam (2024’s Dark Matter) and The Rolling Stones (2023’s Hackney Diamonds) near-unlistenable for many of us. Some of you may recall that both of those LPs received a mere 5 rating for Sound in our reviews. (For further edification and/or a refresher, you can click on each respective album title above to see those reviews accordingly.)

Again, I suspect that part of the sonic feel captured on this new album might have been an essential ingredient for the sound they were intentionally seeking. At times, the music on Who Believes in Angels? harkens back to Sir Elton’s “classic era” of albums — i.e., the myriad LP releases of his during that quite remarkable 1969-76 run. The instruments here on the new LP sound clear and clean, at times remarkably direct and natural for a hit pop album made in 2025. For example, listen to Carlile’s acoustic guitar on “You Without Me” (Side A, Track 5), which is round and woody. Watt’s own, lovely steel-string acoustic guitars on “The River Man” (Side B, Track 2) are also very clean and rich-sounding.

There is some sort of effect or treatment dancing around the edges of the vocals that took me a bit to get used to, but that isn’t a deal breaker. I don’t think it’s Auto-Tune, and it’s not on, or even used throughout, every track. For example, Elton’s voice on ‘Someone To Belong To” (Side B, Track 4) sounds almost effect-free. Likewise, on his gorgeous, final, near-solo showcase, “When This Old World Is Done With Me” (Side B, Track 5), his vocal and piano were recorded simultaneously live in just a couple of takes, and it thus feels super-pure, while also underscoring how great his voice still sounds. I especially love the classical-leaning midsection that reminds me of, again, those early vintage Elton John productions.

Speaking of vintage EJ productions, I loved the opening piano on the epic title track (Side B, Track 1) that echoes the opening to "Where to Now St. Peter?” from Sir Elton’s October 1970 LP on Uni, Tumbleweed Connection LP. Curiously, both of those tracks emerge as the first track on the second side of their respective albums — a coincidence that might or might not be intentional.

I’m also really glad they wrote a song about Laura Nyro, an artist I know was a big influence on Elton John since seeing his interviews — and spectacular performances — on Elvis Costello’s short-lived 2008-10 HBO series, Spectacle: Elvis Costello With. . . . Sir Elton was Elvis’ very first guest on the show. (You can find it on DVD and Blu-ray these days — highly recommended!) The Angels album opener “The Rose of Laura Nyro” (Side A, Track 1) is a wonderful entry point, sounding immediately like classic 1973-74-era Elton (with echoes of 1973’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road) and they’ve even snuck in snippets of Nyro’s own classic “Eli’s Comin’” (which also became a 1969 Top 10 hit for Three Dog Night), resulting in her getting a songwriting credit on the album!

There are, of course, many poignant moments on Who Believes in Angels? that may make you tear up, such as “Never Too Late” (Side A, Track 4). Even the aforementioned proto-autobiographical album closer “When This Old World Is Done with Me” apparently even made Sir Elton break down and cry in the studio as he was recording it. (You can find video of this touching moment in the documentary about the making of the album that is both on YouTube and on the earlier-noted BD.)

As far as the Sound rating for Who Believes in Angels? goes, I’m comfortable giving this album an 8.5 (which rounds up to a 9 on our rating system’s dial element). I did have to ding that rating a bit, as my multi-color vinyl pressing had some surface noise at the end of Side A. (AP editor Mike Mettler reports hearing similar surface noise at the end of his tri-color copy’s Side A, and at the end of Side B as well.) And, frankly, if you turn up the volume loudly, you can hear the whoosh-whoosh-whoosh of the tri-color vinyl between tracks as the needle courses its way through the grooves — something that’s far from what we here on AP like to refer to as dead-quiet vinyl — but it still sounds quite okay overall, and is very enjoyable at the end of the day. As much as I appreciate and like the tri-color vinyl concept — which I first saw on the deluxe limited edition of Sebadoh’s September 2013 reunion LP on Joyful Noise, Defend Yourself — I am hoping the powers that be decide to offer a basic black vinyl copy of Who Believes in Angels? at some point, and one that I hope will sound dead-quiet from start to finish.

As far as the Music rating goes, Who Believes in Angels? comes in at an easy 9 for sure, as it is certainly an excellent collection of tunes bearing new-classic Elton John and Brandi Carlile earworms that will grow on you with repeated listens. The fact that I’ve played this over and over at least five times in prepping this review is telling, and ultimately the best compliment I can offer. Any record that makes you want to play it repeatedly in short order has tapped into something special. Sir Elton John and Brandi Carlile clearly found that special musical mojo in the making of this wonderful album. Bravo!

Mark Smotroff is an avid vinyl collector who has also worked in marketing communications for decades. He has reviewed music for AudiophileReview.com, among others, and you can see more of his impressive C.V. at LinkedIn.

ELTON JOHN & BRANDI CARLILE
WHO BELIEVES IN ANGELS?
1LP (Rocket/EMI)

Side A
1. The Rose Of Laura Nyro
2. Little Richard’s Bible
3. Swing For The Fences
4. Never Too Late
5. You Without Me

Side B
1. Who Believes In Angels?
2. The River Man
3. A Little Light
4. Someone To Belong To
5. When This Old World Is Done With Me