California based musical artist Saint Jaimz entered the music world following a sixteen-year tenure in the United States Army inspired by a talent contest he participated in while on duty in Germany. He’s made his reputation this far on a handful of distinctive singles characterized by his superb vocals, fidelity to R&B traditions, and yet his penchant for defying expectations with quirky twists on existing themes and forms. He’s making his own niche in the genre and keeping his music tethered tightly to its bedrock fundamentals while building a new art on that sturdy foundation. We hear the results of this approach in full with his current single “AWOL (Absent Without Love)” and it’s clear he’s blazing his own path through modern music.
The song has particularly evocative results thanks to bringing “modern” instruments like synthesizer color and light keyboard patterns together with electronic drums with a surprisingly live snap. The traditional bass and acoustic guitar added into the song deepens its quality and never sounds disjointed; the latter, particularly, lends a surprisingly lyrical quality to “AWOL (Absent Without Love)” that makes it second half and conclusion more memorable. Despite the presence of electronic instruments in the mix, the song somehow achieves a live feeling as if this final recording was one of the first attempts they made to nail the song after convening for its recording.
Jaimz, especially, sounds like the experience described in the song didn’t happen long ago at all. The details of the conflict are fresh and vividly phrased. Jaimz’s focus on making his musical point is equally reflected in the lyrical writing for this song – this is a speaker who has taken time to collect his thoughts and is now saying exactly what’s on his mind without a single wasted word. There’s an innate authority to the way Jaimz gets behind every word of the lyric – getting this right obviously means a great deal to him and his need to nail the weight behind each word brings you deeper into his performance.
He pulls it all off with “AWOL (Absent Without Love)”. Saint Jaimz manages to hit the mark with a fully formed modern R&B classic, a creative reinvention of the style, and a track with genuine pop merit that has real commercial potential. Jaimz has covered an amazing amount of ground since beginning his musical career in earnest and he brings the same mixture of resoluteness, faith in one’s self, and skill which has helped him overcome other challenges. His voice and music are heard with this song and will be more and more with each successive release.
It’s rare you hear an artist with such obvious upward trajectory. Expressing himself through the medium of music is as natural as breathing for Saint Jaimz and each new single release finds him refining his efforts more and more. The effect on the listeners grows more immense as well. He’s an artist of growing power and the undeniable entertainment value behind “AWOL (Absent Without Love)” will help him reach the widest possible audience.
-review by Jodi Marbury
Music Publicity Services @ Danie Cortese Entertainment: “Building names, Building brands, Building bank accounts” Visit us here: www.daniecorteseent.com
