Review: Ed Sheeran's 'Equals' finds him in domestic bliss

Huge things have happened to Ed Sheeran since his last solo album — marriage, loss, fatherhood

“Equals,” by Ed Sheeran (Atlantic Records)

Huge things have happened to Ed Sheeran since his last solo album — marriage, loss, fatherhood. They're all on the new collection “Equals,” an album that sweetly sounds like a man who now has all he needs.

“I have grown up/I am a father now/Everything has changed/But I am still the same somehow,” Sheeran sings on the revealing opening song, “Tides.” Don't believe it: He has changed.

Gone is the heartbreak and bitterness that gave a sly edge to songs on previous albums. Gone is much of the insecurity that made Sheeran so relatable. That guy you imagined down at the pub with his mates enjoying a pint and a packet of crisps is now home, shutting out the world.