Luke Sital-Singh - The Fire Inside - Album Review

After seeing Luke Sital-Singh perform for the first time last month at Latitude Festival I did a little digging and found three pieces of good news: Firstly he was coming to Brighton to perform in September; secondly he had just released a collection of cover songs that he recorded from his favourite films (including great tracks by The Shins, Simon and Garfunkel and the like); and finally his debut out was due for release soon (OUT NOW).

For those of you in Brighton, or elsewhere that he is playing in his UK tour, I would strongly urge you to have a listen to his music and if it's your cup of tea then get on down to a show near you! It's really important to support emerging artists at the early stages of their career and to support your local music scene too. The venues aren't massive and the ticket prices aren't in the hundreds so why not have a great night out for around a tenner! For the Brightonians amongst you, as well as Karima Francis who is supporting for the whole tour, we have local minstrel Jacko Hooper, whose debut EP 'For You' was released last month and is rather fantastic. Check out my review of it here of have a listen below.

Here is my track by track breakdown of his debut album, 'The Fire Inside', which is available to buy now on itunes for just £6.99.

1. Nothing Stays The Same - Opening with an "ooh" reminiscent of Ben Howard's 'The Wolves' without fear of imitation. With a simple melody and uplifting chorus (which when played live at Latitude was with the backing of London Contemporary Voices) the first track has the passion of Frank Turner and astute relatable lyrics which show that his view of the world is a keen one:

 "Let your guard down

Get your heart pounded

We all bleed

We all breathe

And nothing stays the same"

2. Greatest Lovers - The chorus effect on the guitar at the start sounds slightly 80s/90s, like a Chris Isaak or The Smiths intro. In a music scene filled with introspective shoegazing self-deprecating acoustic folk, it is very refreshing to have an uplifting track, even moreso one that sounds like an uptempo Damien Rice track (in fact I can imagine him doing a down-beat version which would be equally great).

  

3. Bottled Up Tight - This song is a bit of a dark horse. It starts simply with a finger-picked guitar accompaniment and a soft vocal, remaining under the radar even in the first chorus: 

"I feel a fire, 

I see a flame set me alight,

Bring me desire bottled up tight" 

Then the drums and piano kick in and the song builds and builds for the last few minutes, moreso than your average construction site manages in a week.

4. 21st Century Heartbeat - A social commentary, unrestricted by location or social class, simply looking at the crazy world that we live in at the present, wherever we are on earth! 

5. Lilywhite - A touching piano ballad in the style of Billy Joel (more my parent's generation) or Fyfe Dangerfield, which once again builds and swells as it progresses organically. 

6. Nearly Morning - This track is like an un-Americanized version of a Secondhand Serenade track, with less sap and better lyrics. Once again the vocal layering in the backing sounds great - a good tip for any aspiring songwriters out there is to befriend a fantastic choir so you can replicate this live! The a cappella bit at the end could probably be drawn out a little longer, but maybe that's for the live shows!

7. I Have Been A Fire - Sparse to the point of almost a cappella, the vocals dominate this track like a Jeff Buckley song, with an almost Bon Jovi like rise in the chorus and when the distorted guitar enters after the second time around. Powerful stuff!

8. Everything Is Making You - Definitely getting a Starsailor vibe from this track, with maybe a bit of Travis thrown into the mix. Acoustic led with throaty vocals, underpinned by the percussion and backing vocals, this song will definitely come to life when played live.

9. Fail For You - Starting with a chorus of voices over a Buckley-esque reverbed clean electric guitar, the lush harmonies and emotive lyrics are sure to draw a few tears for those of a gentle disposition, in a post-breakup lull or who have seen too many charity adverts that day. In all seriousness, it is a beautiful track. Watch the official video below. 

"I bought you the sky and the oceans too

Why the look in your eye

The only thing I couldn't do

Is fail for you, fail for you"

10. We Don't Belong - Juxtaposing the softest track on the album so far with this upbeat almost-boogie piano led track, the album is never stagnant, jumping all over the place but not in a random uncontrolled way as many do. I can definitely see this song in a future Zach Braff film. Check out my review of the soundtrack to his current release "Wish I Was Here" here.

11. Cornerstone -Like a philosopher in the audience of Question Time, Luke's words definitely carry more weight than perhaps taken in at first listen, questioning himself as well as the others around him in this song: "Every life needs a cornerstone, and are you mine?"

12. Benediction - Closing the album on a somber note, in the vein of 'Fail For You', with this piano and vocal track, like a stripped back version of The Fray or a David Gray track. You can feel the album physically unwind, like when you take a hot bath after a long day at work. 

The album is a time-matured collection of his works so far, not rushed and not compromised. The production is excellent and the variety is impressive. The backing vocal arrangements are brilliant so kudos to whoever did those! Luke's songwriting is mature and charismatic without shouting for attention, and his vocal abilities should not be overlooked in this stunning paragon debut album. The future looks to be very bright for Luke from where I am looking.

http://lukesitalsingh.com/

@lukesitalsingh  

Jacko Hooper Live Review and EP 'For You' Review'

I arrived at The Brunswick just after doors had opened and already the venue was half full. By the time the first support Ellie Ford took the the stage, there was only standing room left at the back. The dimly lit lampshades and candles on the tables gave the room an aura of light orange and red. The audience was made up primarily of people of what I'd call parental age (30s-50s) which was good to see as this demographic isn't usually represented as fully on weeknight gigs. They clearly knew that they were in for a special evening and they were most definitely right.

Ellie Ford is a Brighton-based singer-songwriter who is also a very accomplished harpist. Having already seen her performing a number of support slots including local band Time for T and touring solo songwriter Tom Hickox, Ellie seems to be a popular choice for acoustic gigs and it is clear to see why. Her songs are enchanting, with her guitar and harp parts underpinning her sultry vocals. For an accomplished songwriter, she seems slightly uneasy in between songs, but I am sure that over time she will grow more comfortable under the spotlight, as she should well be.

The second support was Tom Staniford, who performs under the name of Staniford. He is surely used to being the tallest man in the room as his presence towered over the audience, which he broke with a friendly face and some lovely music. He seemed more comfortable engaging with audience, introducing his songs with clarity and performing them with a passion seen in artists such as Bon Iver and Glen Hansard. His guitar songs reminded me a little of Ryan Keen with a certain faint air of Something Corporate in his piano ones, which he played well despite the out of tune piano causing some problems. His lyrics were grounded, my favourite being in the last song which he played unplugged... "Should we play it safe or punch above our weight". Below is the video for his recent single Elizabeth, a haunting and beautiful track.

After these two wonderful support slots the man of the hour took to the stage, to great applause from the fully packed venue even before he's picked up his guitar. Dressed in a smart shirt, waistcoated and with and hat and his thick rimmed glasses he looked like a man who meant business. He opened without introducing himself, playing a song that showed off his vocal and guitar abilities immediately. The emotional intensity of his performance was overwhelming even from the start. He appeared to be quite a shy and introverted guy, describing himself as "an emotional chap", looking visibly moved by the first rapture of applause, which in such an intimate setting was by no means the usual response to a solo singer-songwriter. He humbly thanked the audience for being there and the supports, whom he endorsed enthusiastically. He seemed to have a mismatched confidence to his slightly nervous facade, a confidence grown from a young man finding the thing that he is meant to do and doing it: Jacko Hooper is meant to write and perform music and I, amongst the rest of the audience, am so very glad that he does.

I could go on and on about the performance but I think sometimes simplicity is best so I will try to be concise. I go to a lot of gigs, seeing a vast amount of bands and solo artists at all different stages in their careers, from people playing tiny pub gigs to festival headliners, and I have not been this excited about discovering a solo artist since first stumbling across Ben Howard in 2011. His set is filled with originals as there is no space for covers in it. There was not a single track that I would have dropped from it, no set-fillers or haphazard B-sides, simply a masterclass in songwriting and solo performance, both vocally and instrumentally. Jacko's voice is full of great grainy textures, from the deep gravelly bottom through the rich middles to the powerful falsetto, which each seem to come to him just as easily as breathing. He seems totally at home on the stage and hopefully with the continued support of his friends, family and supporters he will continue to spend a lot of time there!



Below is my review of his new EP 'For You', which has been over a year in the making and hits like an fine cask-aged whisky, burning straight to the heart.

1. Egg Shells

Starting gently with the acoustic guitar, banjo and subtle female backing vocals, the song builds til the drums enter at the second verse. It stays somewhat contained in the recording, but live the song is given more of a boost with vocal ad libbing, but in its recorded version it is still it is a neatly packaged gem, gentle and sparkling with very moving lyrics: "So you my lover, stay if I can gather all the reasons why I believe that we're together".

2. November 5th Song

Again starting gently, this song has a delicacy of a Damien Rice track until the chorus, which is fantastically catchy and simple; this could be easily be a song in the charts right now if marketed in the right way. The vocal is precise and heavy with emotions and will in all likelihood haunt you for weeks after hearing it.

3. Run Away With Me

Just when you think the songs can't get any more raw, the simple strumming and exposed vocal take it to another level. The chorus reminds me slightly of David Gray's 'Sail Away', not just because of the lyrical similarity but the style of the performance and professionalism of the song. Hints of James Morrison slip into the vocal in places too, which is by no means a bad thing.

4. Roaming

Closing the EP, Roaming is a song about travelling and not knowing where you will end up. This is a live recording with just vocals and guitar, doused in just the right amount of reverb to make it sparkle.

The EP is available to buy through itunes here for a meagre £2.49. But take it from me, you will want to catch this guy live soon, because if there is any justice in the world then he will be skyrocketing to the dizzy heights of the world stage sometime very soon! 

www.Jackohooper.com
@jacko_hooper