Music Reviews
Artist:
Jack CheshireTitle:
‘Allow It to Come On’Website:
http://www.myspace.com/jackcheshire
Jack Cheshire’s debut offering ‘Allow It to Come On’ is both warm and intimate - perhaps because it was recorded in his own bedroom. It’s a mixture of folk, indie, psychedelica, melancholia and brooding beats. At times you’re left feeling it really might do him some good to get out of room and stop moaning (such as on the rather niggling ‘Fireworks‘) but elsewhere his almost conversational tone and gentle guitar combine to good effect (see ’Love’ or ‘For You‘).
It is lo-fi minimalism throughout but full of quirks and just enough melody to keep you listening. There is something inherently likeable about Jack’s mumbled, stumbling delivery but perhaps not enough to sustain a full album.
There are glimpses of something special throughout ‘Allow it To Come On’ but I can’t help wondering what would happen if Jack gave up his solo status and surrounded himself by band members who could pull him in different creative directions - he seems to have got a bit comfortable all on his own.
Despite its introspective slant this is not a sad record - it’s a pensive, meandering and sits effortlessly in the background only occasionally popping up to call for attention. Jack Cheshire could be a name we are set to hear a lot more of but only time will decide.
