New blood

One of the distinct pleasures of reviewing contemporary music is finding new acts that show a wealth of promise. This is the case with the duo Tanlines and solo act James Bay. 

Tanlines — Highlights (True Panther Sounds, available on Amazon.com) Electronic music and indie ”soft” rock blend brilliantly in Tanlines, and its second studio album, Highlights. Hailing from NYC, Tanlines are Eric Emmm who handles guitar and vocal chores and Jesse Cohen, percussion. While Slipping Away and Palace are my immediate favorites, with shades of Cure and other ’80s bands swirling in the mix, you can’t underestimate Tanlines and think of the duo as a mere retro-sound band. Dance-worthy club songs, and yet dreamy and ambient when slowing down, the band is very much today, while obviously paying homage to the New Wave and electronica era of 30 years ago. There are several choice tracks, and what truly works with this release is how the whole album seamlessly flows. It’s a great 2015 discovery.

James Bay — Chaos and the Calm (Republic/UMG). Twenty-four-year-old James Bay first raised eyebrows when his CD topped the British charts. Far left center of mainstream pop, Bay’s music mines a raw rock idiom that reminded me at first of the Kings of Leon. This is especially so on the album’s opener Craving. While Hold Back the River is the radio-friendly carrier single; I truly liked Let It Go with its sparse arrangement and his shifting to falsetto on some notes of the chorus. Plaintive blues rock, with a whiskey-soaked voice, from one so young is a rarity; and while Bay may sound like a throwback to one who has followed the music scene as long as I have, he is something fresh for the audience today. Collide is a muscular up-tempo number, and Get Out While You Can should prove to be a stadium favorite. Bay is one to watch out for.