A mesmerizing new album from Jacob Cullum takes on the form of an incredibly descriptive and brutally honesty and cinematic set of songs that range in emotion and drive, but all have this way of attaching themselves to you as if they were meant for your ears alone.
The Seasons album is gorgeous and packs more heart than you may be able to handle in one listening session, but you know what? It's worth every minute of it.
These songs are moving and have a powerful impactfulness that leaves you in a different place than you were before you started listening.
You can hear wonderful influences like Nick Drake for example coming through in certain areas of some songs that have a more stripped-down tonality. This is beautiful as well since you find yourself really paying more attention to the words to songs like that.
There is some excellent guitar work on the record to go right along with the artists naturally soothing vocal approach and it all becomes one as they melt together and complement each other so well.
The songs are able to paint these vivid pictures with words and sound, textures and truths, and it all seems freeing in a way.
He has a way of stripping away everything and showing you his bare bones underneath the everyday person. He lets it all go in his songs and that's why these are so damn good.
Paiano, acoustic guitar, and vocals re the 3 most main sources of sound on this record and it makes for a natural and lush feel.
These songs aren't drenched in effects or tons of other instruments. It's pure talent and these are what Cullum would sound like live. This is real music.