Single Review: “Lady in My Life” by Will Wheaton

In his new single, the cosmopolitan “Lady in My Life,” Will Wheaton establishes himself as a melody-focused singer and songwriter above all else. Mixing a bit of old-school pop aesthetics with contemporary muscularity with regard to instrumentation, Wheaton unleashes a powerful cocktail of urban rhythm and rhyme that could make any casual listener into a genuine fan. There’s not a lot of harmonic girth to this track, but truth be told, the lead vocal here doesn’t allow for any. Simply put, once you’ve pressed play on “Lady in My Life,” it’s hard to focus on anything other than the exotic crooning of its lead singer who, surprisingly enough, has never sounded more in the recording studio before this brand-new effort.

There’s a lot of R&B to the beats in this single, but I wouldn’t say that the song qualifies as an urban pop crossover piece. The bass-heavy synth tones in the midsection of “Lady in My Life” give it a crisp, springy vibe that could make any bonfire party all the sexier. Melding together the jagged percussive parts with the textured melody comprising the backdrop at the start of the song wasn’t an easy task, but somehow Will Wheaton makes it sound all too seamless – mostly because of his approach to the vocal. His voice is the sonic superglue holding everything together here, and by employing organic features instead of pure artificiality, he sets himself apart from a disturbing trend in synth and indie-pop today. I like the direction of this debut, and I think it’s going to sit particularly well with the underground audience it was crafted for.

The singing in the chorus is very sugary, but by no means would I describe it as being saccharine in style at all; on the contrary, I think it complements the synthetic tones in the song quite well. There’s been a lot of auto-tuned, processed pop making its way into the international headlines as of late, but despite the many facets “Lady in My Life” has in common with its mainstream counterparts, it’s essentially devoid of the overproduced finish that has plagued many of the genre’s chart-toppers in 2023. I wouldn’t describe any portion of this single as being overly polished in any way, which is a lot more than I can say for some of the major label content I’ve reviewed this month.

If you like smart indie pop from a credible young source, picking up “Lady in My Life” should be a no-brainer this April. Will Wheaton has a couple of rough edges that still need to be sanded down if his ultimate goal is transitioning from the underground to the mainstream side of the dial, but as far as rookie releases go, his is absolutely one of the most well-rounded and mature that I’ve had the pleasure of listening to in the past few weeks. 2023 still has the better chunk of a calendar to get through, but unless his contemporaries can break off something as passionate and inspired as “Lady in My Life,” Will Wheaton has a real shot at winning the brilliance award in my book.

Bradley Wickham