There’s a lot that’s familiar with James Blunt’s sound.
His distinctive voice is somewhere between a Chris Martin swoon and a Damien Rice falsetto. His upbeat songs have a bit of Elton John’s British blues swagger. His rockers bear the Coldplay anthemic guitar stamp. And his ballads continue the legacy of great, gritty folk songs.
What makes Blunt different, though, are his experiences and how they are reflected in his songs–especially his stints as a peacekeeper in Kosovo and as a member of Queen Elizabeth II’s royal guard.
“I have seen birth, I have seen death,” Blunt sang in “Cry,” his voice rising and cracking with emotion, “Do you see my guilt? Should I feel all right?”
Before his “Back to Bedlam” album dropped in the U.S. in October, it sold 3.5 million copies worldwide and spent nine weeks at No. 1 on the UK charts. His single, “You’re Beautiful,” spent five weeks at No. 1 on the British singles chart. Blunt’s touring in the U.S., and his recent “Saturday Night Live” stint is bringing more attention.
“It’s been amazing,” Blunt said. “A year ago I was really enjoying playing to smaller audiences and fresh ears at home, and I’ve missed that.”
Check out James at jamesblunt.com.
[ NEWSDAY, BOSTON GLOBE ]OTHER ACTS ON THE RISE
Cold War Kids
The Cold War Kids play anything that doesn’t break, and maybe a few things that do. The sound of the L.A. quartet–Matt Maust, Jonnie Bo Russell, Matt Aveiro and Nathan Willett–reaches a point where post-punk meets gospel. Imagine what Spoon would sound like at a camp making music with found objects.
“The great thing about this band is that nobody feels like they have to do anything else to fulfill their musical desires,” Willett said. Added Russell: “Nobody came in saying, ‘This is my gig.’ “
That spirit carries over into the music on the band’s “Mulberry Street” EP. They recently recorded six more songs for a future release. Download “Heavy Boots” at coldwarkids.com/music.htm.
Check out Cold War Kids at myspace.com/coldwarkids.
[ L.A. TIMES ]Hot Chip
Hot Chip, a London collective armed with banks of synthesizers and loads of cheekiness, may finally get some love on this side of the Atlantic. The group’s low-fi, charming debut “Coming on Strong” has landed an American release through Astralwerks.
The six-minute-plus epic “Crap Kraft Dinner”–where it tosses out lines such as “All the people that I love are drunk” over what sounds like early Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark merged with Kraftwerk–should have landed them a deal easily. The long-overdue release of “Coming on Strong” may simply be a setup for the band’s 2006 release. The first single, “Over and Over,” is an unhinged, dancey good time.
Check out Hot Chip at www.hotchip.co.uk.
[ NEWSDAY ]
