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artist.....: James Tillman
album......: Shangri La EP
year.......: 2014
label......: N/A
N/A
source.....: WEB
moodswing..: Soul
releasesize: 35.90 MB
tracks.....: 04
length.....: 15:39
encoder....: LAME
quality....: 320kbps
scenealized: 08.19.2016
It is quite simply the silkiest EP
you'll hear this year. Lushly romantic
and sinuously sung, this sonorous
escape from your every day makes a warm
Calgon bath seem like languishing in
weak dishwater. Live musicianship and
organic jam session atmospherics lend
this project an honesty and
authenticity that generally a younger
generation gets accused of lacking.
Well, James Tillman shuts that noise
down in four songs that all end much
too soon and leaves one thirsty for
more. Only KING has done a better job
at whetting the appetite so quickly.
The name isn't mere propaganda, it
actually says it all: for James
TillmanÆs debut project is Shangri La.
Wherever did this resonant, rich tenor
come from? A Washington, DC native,
Tillman is more than a
singer/songwriter on the rise; he's a
long-time musician, having conquered
the clarinet at age 16. A New School
jazz student, following such notables
as Bilal, Jose James, and Jesse Boykins
III, the newcomer strikes an
unassuming, bespectacled figure, but
has already graced such New York stages
as B.B. King's and Bowery Electric and
been featured by Essence and Okayplayer
as someone to watch. Influenced by
everyone from Marvin Gaye and Nat King
Cole to Caetano Veloso, Tillman's
technique is apparent from the second
he opens his mouth, with a gift for
caressing high-pitched notes that are
still as decidedly male as they are
perfectly pitched, as demonstrated
during the aria notes of "Loved."
Over TillmanÆs four songs, two have
already been rightly placed and well
advertised. The first, the project's
sole mid-tempo groove, "Shangri-La,"
got featured on BamaLoveSoul's On Deck
2. With a classic R&B drum, guitar, and
bass driven rhythm and aerial
harmonies, the title track
metaphorically represents the legendary
land with each soaring chorus while
Tillman shows off both a strong natural
and a sinewy falsetto. The second, the
music blogs-pushed single, "And Then,"
originally was more like "Shangri-La"
in its '70' soul rhythms and a more
swinging tempo, but the song is slowed
down just a touch for the EP to a bossa
nova groove. With a wash of strings
making an appearance by the second
verse, the results are more elegant
than the single, though each is
sublime. Both the acoustic "Love
Within" and longing laced "Loved" are
soothing, introspective ballads on
Shangri La. The duets with strings on
"Love Within" and subdued guitar on
"Loved," with the minimal production
techniques used on both, make a
listener feel as though Tillman is
serenading them directly, causing
swoons.
Recorded in Sao Paulo, Brazil, this
four-song ode to love, created with the
help of producer Nick Graham-Smith and
guitarist Sergio Sayeg, announces a
bright young talent who joins such
newcomers as Kwabs, Daley, Moses
Sumney, Marquis Tolliver, Josh Osho,
and Sid Sriram in renewing hope in the
next generation of soul males under 30
with something to say and the vocal
gifts to say it. Welcome to a much
needed club of fresh talent and real
musicians. Highly Recommended.
Url:https://jmtill.bandcamp.com/album/s
hangri-la-ep
psst, more info at jmtill.com
01 Love Within 03:02
02 And Then 04:23
03 Loved 04:39
04 Shangri La 03:35