Jack Savoretti returns to Birmingham's O2 Institute

The first had scorched to the dizzy heights of number 70, the next had failed to enter the chart, while the third – 2012's Before The Storm – sank like a stone after ascending to, uhm, No109.

Last year, he finally made his breakthrough. Like David Gray before him, years of languishing in the doldrums came to an end. His breakthrough, Written In Scars, was a Top 10 hit and won plaudits from Q, BBC Radio 2, The Independent, and others. Even Tesco came to love Jack, making his record their Album of the Week.

Establish

Fast forward to 2016 and Jack's back with a new record, Sleep No More, which is out today. It features 12 original songs set to establish him as one of the UK's biggest male artists.

On this career-defining album, Jack has well and truly found his voice, both as a singer and songwriter. The first single When We Were Lovers sets the tone with its big heart and spell-binding rhythm.

Jack describes the album as a 'love letter to my wife' and provides some insight into the album's title. "The whole point of this album is that it's about the stuff that keeps you up at night," he says.

There's an infectious restlessness that drives the album. Each song is a showcase for his exceptional voice from the honest warmth of I'm Yours to the anthemic We Are Bound.

He's philosophical about his years in the wilderness. "Sometimes you are banging your head against a brick wall for so long you wonder why. But those moments only encourage you to keep going.

"We try not to get caught up with the industry and the different games and the luck of the draw. As long as we work at it we can keep doing it we're happy." And the Savoretti name knows hardship. His grandparents hid in the mountains near Genoa, Italy during the Second World War. His grandfather was head of the Partisan movement that freed Genoa area of Italy from fascism during the conflict.

Jack wrote Sleep No More after being on the road for two years. "I got off the road and had so much to say because I'd not written any new songs during that time.

"So we went straight in the studio and it was a very direct and quick album about all the things that had been keeping me up in the past few years.

"There's a fine line between things I love and hate. And besides, we've not slept much in the past few years. There's an insomniac feeling of 'how much more I can take'."

Savoretti, who is married to British actress Jemma Powell with whom he has two children, is back on the road to promote the new record and will reach Birmingham's O2 Institute on Thursday.

"During the last two years we've been playing the same album and we were very comfortable. We knew how to swim through it when things were against us. Now it's back to that exciting, nerve-wracking feeling."

By Andy Richardson