Tom Chaplin, lead singer and frontman of English band Keane, has just released his debut solo album. The Wave is a heartening musical catharsis which waxes poetic of crippling drug addiction and ruined relationships. But the album’s most poignant moments clearly stem from Chaplin’s own realizations of just how close he came to losing everything when confronted with his own mortality (“Bring the Rain” and “Cheating Death”).

Exquisitely produced by Aqualung’s Matt Hales, The Wave is a sparingly orchestrated, but highly emotive affair which sheds new light upon Chaplin’s commanding vocal style and newly presented songwriting acumen.  Key tracks include: the earnest “Still Waiting,” the weighty “The River,” the pensive “Quicksand” and the uplifting “Better Way.”

Chaplin recently kicked off his first solo trek, the Carried By The Wave Tour, which includes North America and Canada before wrapping up in May with final performances across the pond in the United Kingdom.