Tuesday, February 2, 2016

Giovanni James: "Shame On You"

Giovanni James is a hot young talent about which I've been able to dig up very little, aside from the facts that he has been picked up by major label Warner Brothers with only two singles under his belt, of which "Shame On You" is the most recent. It will be interesting to see if WB allows him to develop along this stylistically singular display of talent, or if they will insist on pairing him up with EDM/trap producers and attempt to mold him into a crossover pop star.

Monday, February 1, 2016

Harriet: "American Appetite"

I suppose this single has been out for a few months but I'm just now catching up with this week's release of Harriet's debut album of the same title, American Appetite. There's an almost gospel-like urgency in the arrangement that no doubt owes a great deal to the contributions of keyboardist Alex Casnoff, who used to play in Dawes, one of the more sweeping, expansive sounding bands in the Americana/roots rock genre of the past decade. The spare logistics crescendo as the song peaks to swelling effect, with Casnoff's own vocals providing a warbling, uncertain counterpoint. Dawes' loss is Harriet's gain, and ours as well.