Independent (label)
17 January 2018 (released)
25 February 2018
Star-crossed tales, civil rights bouts and armchair philosophy are strewn throughout the latest release Head Above Tide by New York artist Jason Vitelli. The 16 tracks centre around an adult contemporary pop-rock that is often swayed by a jazzy swing. Born on Long Island, Vitelli honed his craft writing music for documentaries and short films before realizing that he had much more to say as a singer-songwriter. That history of soundtracking real-life tales inspired many of the tracks on the new record from the marriage rights themed 'The Persecuted' to the story of refugees in the Second Sudanese Civil War in 'Three Marionettes'. Vitelli empathizes with all his subject matter, putting himself in the place of the people who fill his stories.
The opener 'Hit and Run' opens with a grand piano flourish. Vitelli croons while he tickles the ivories. Drums stop and start, closely following his darting melodies. You are lulled into a smooth, behind the beat groove that then rushes to catch up and stop on a dime like a kid running to a crosswalk only to have the orange hand deny him passage just as he reaches the precipice. Kudos to the tastefully articulate percussive talents of Yorgos Maniatis.
The aforementioned 'The Persecuted' delves into socio-political matters in terms of the struggle for equal rights for the gay community. Vitelli's winding and long-phrased melodic style provide an ample enough canvas to turn the lyrics into an intelligent dialogue and cogent argument beyond what a typical rock song would be capable of with a traditional stanza structure that relies on straight rhythms and lyrical simplicity and repetition.
Jason Vitelli artfully exposes the stories of many of the world's forgotten people on Head Above Tide. The group he has assembled are a talented bunch who have made the realization of his vision possible. At a certain point, the meandering style can get to be a little hard to follow. Where in instrumental jazz, if you miss a few beats of a line, you can just pick it up at the next spot, doing this with complex lyrics can leave the listener missing part of the story. This probably means you could stand to give it many listens to catch all the content.
