John Mayer gets into Heavier Things

I find it ironic that one of the artists who helped fuel the ongoing acoustic revolution does not really perform acoustic music. But this is the truth. Despite his pared down rock sound and ingenious use of the acoustic guitar, John Mayer performs with a band that uses all the usual electric doodads. But no matter, his music is young. The themes of his lyrics are always accessible. He has a sweet tenor voice laced with just the right amount of gravel. He has a way with guitars. And best of all, he sings with the sincerity of somebody just discovering life and what it is all about.

Mayer, only 25, made quite a splash with his first album Room for Squares two years ago. Although a total unknown, he bucked the prevailing preference for R&B music in the US of A and then gained worldwide recognition in rapid time. His deceptively simple composition (Why Georgia) spoke volumes to listeners his age and he presented new interesting perspectives on the problems that commonly confront the younger generation (No Such Thing). And surprises of surprises, unlike many of today’s rockers and rappers who are ever in a mood to diss everything under the sun, Mayer’s melodies celebrate life – take note of his upbeat refrains – while his lyrics retain a sense of joy and awe over anything (Your Body is a Wonderland).

As of this writing, Mayer’s Room for Squares has already sold over three million copies and given him his very first Grammy Award. This was for Best Pop Vocal Performance for the phenomenally popular Your Body is a Wonderland. Check out a few acoustic cafés in a single evening and you will surely find some guitar-toting kid or whole groups doing their version of this song. The best thing to happen to Mayer though is that he hurdled the scary sophomore jinx with flying colors. His second album Heavier Things made number one on its first week in the market. Such acceptance from the public means that Mayer is assured of enjoying stardom for many more years.

Mayer targets the same market in Heavier Things but as the title suggests, he is now a smart, sophisticated dude. Take note that his choruses do not soar as high as before. His modifiers are also sparse in his new songs. What he retains in large doses is his grasp of situations that men his age find themselves in. Mayer talks about romances gone awry (Split Screen Sadness, Come Back to Bed and Clarity, insecurities, New Deep), malaise (Something’s Missing and Bigger Than My Body) and about living in general (Home Life and Wheel).

The album’s interesting feature is the use of charts to track down the emotional content and effect of every cut. Each song is graded by colors and keywords shown in illustrations. The radio-friendly Bigger Than My Body has the descriptions, optimistic guitar solo, flight, promissory and defiant. For target points in the human body it goes to the head, the heart and the lower arm and it is performed in the key of E. I do not know what you will make of these but these make the cover and the songs more interesting. You don’t just listen to them. Mayer also gets you to sit down, read, analyze and digest your reaction. Very clever. For this alone, I cannot wait to find out what will make up his third album.

Enjoy this one. Better yet, put a copy or two in your shopping cart as a present for some people you like this Christmas.

Tunog Acoustic

For more acoustic sounds, there is Tunog Acoustic, a compilation of mostly classic tracks by Filipino artists from Warner Music. Some are big names in the acoustic circuit like Paolo Santos and Nina while others are established talents who have also ventured into acoustic singing in their own recordings.

Here finally, is the audio version of Paolo’s much-requested rendition of Moonlight Over Paris. If you wish to watch him do this song live, check out his Acoustic Nights VCD. Also in Tunog Acoustic is Nina’s hit song Jealous. Then there are the modern classics, some culled from recordings made for other labels like Huwag Na Lang Kaya by True Faith, Hanggang Kailan by Rannie Raymundo, So Slow by Freestyle, Forevermore by Side A, Kanlungan by Noel Cabangon with Buklod, I Wish Tonight (Misty Glass Window) by Artstart and others.